- (1.) The present appeal has been filed by the Oriental Insurance Company Limited challenging the Award dated 06.05.2014 passed by the learned Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Ropar (Rupnagar), whereby a compensation of Rs. 3,47,700/- along with interest at the rate of 9% per annum from the date of institution of the claim petition till realization was granted to Usha Rani, and Tarsem Lal, the parents of Harpreet Singh (since deceased). Learned counsel has raised the following arguments:- i) Harpreet Singh (since deceased) was driving maruti Alto car bearing registration No.HP-12-B-6954, after borrowing the same from its registered owner, therefore, he would step into the shoes of the registered owner and thus, would be construed as owner of the offending vehicle, therefore, the Insurance Company can not be held liable to indemnify the owner who is not a third party; ii) that the driver, the owner and the Insurance Company of the second vehicle with which Maruti Alto car bearing registration No. HP-12-B-6954 had collided on 21.01.2013 were not impleaded as respondents; and iii) As per provisions contained in Section 147 of the Motor Vehicles Act, on account of the death of the driver, the claim petition could be presented before the Workmen's Compensation Commissioner only.
(2.) The brief facts of the case as set forth by the claimants are that on 21.01.2013 at about 11.30 p.m., Harpreet Singh (since deceased) while driving a maruti Alto car bearing registration No. HP-12-B-6954 owned by Krishan Gopal, by observing the traffic rules with care and caution was coming from the Hotel Plaza, Anandpur Sahib, to his village Gambhirpur. When the said car reached near the P.S.E.B. Office on Nangal-Ropar, GT Road, it collided with an unknown vehicle. The driver of the said unknown vehicle fled away from the place of occurrence after the accident. Harpreet Singh received multiple injuries on his body and when carried to the hospital, he was declared as dead. Autopsy on the corpus of Harpreet Singh was conducted at the Civil Hospital, Anandpur Sahib. The matter was reported to the police by Jagdish Ram (PW2) on the basis of which, the FIR was registered. Since Harpreet Singh was earning Rs. 3,300/- per month as driver of Krishan Gopal, hence, the claimants claimed Rs. 10,00,000/- along with interest at the rate of 18% per annum on account of death of Harpreet Singh in a motor vehicular accident. On appearance, Krishan Gopal (the registered owner of the Maruti Alto car) filed written statement admitting the contents of the claim petition and submitted that the claim petition be decided as per rules.
(3.) The appellant-Insurance Company filed a separate written statement alleging that the driver of the car bearing registration No. HP-12-B-6954 was not holding a valid driving licence; the claimants were neither the legal heirs nor dependents of the deceased and, therefore, had no locus-standi to file the claim petition. It was further averred that the accident had not taken place in the manner as alleged by the claimants and in fact that was a case of hit and run accident. The claim petition was filed in connivance with Krishan Gopal.;