MANJIT KAUR Vs. GUIJNAIL SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The controversy in appeal here is with regard to the quantum of compensation payable to the claimants, they being the widow and 3 sons of Amarjit Singh deceased, who was killed in an accident with a truck at the crossing on the road between Sectors 35 and 36, Chandigarh. Amarjit Singh deceased was sitting on the pillion seat of the Scooter HIL 4098 when the truck CHW 1615 came and knocked him down. This happened on Nov. 14, 1977.

(2.) The Tribunal found this to be a case of contributory negligence with 75 per cent of the blame being apportioned to the driver of the scooter and the remaining 25 per cent to the truck driver. The loss to the claimants was assessed to be Rs. 48,000/-, but in view of the finding of contributory negligence, the compensation awarded was only Rs. 12,000/-.

(3.) The Tribunal committed a patent error in so reducing the compensation payable to the claimants. The contributory negligence here was that of the drivers of the truck and the scooter, not in any way that of Amarjit Singh. There was, thus, no occasion for any deduction being made from the compensation that the Tribunal had assessed to be payable to the claimants.