UNITED INDIA INSURANCE CO. LTD. Vs. SUNITA BANSAL AND OTHERS
LAWS(P&H)-2007-12-154
HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA
Decided on December 06,2007

UNITED INDIA INSURANCE CO. LTD. Appellant
VERSUS
Sunita Bansal And Others Respondents

JUDGEMENT

Rajesh Bindal, J. - (1.) The Insurance company is in appeal before this Court against award of the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Chandigarh (for short 'the Tribunal') wherein on account of death of Pankaj Bansal, his widow, minor daughters and widow mother have been granted compensation of Rs. 15,00,640/- in total. The amount was ordered to be distributed amongst the claimants. The accident or the negligence is not in dispute. The dispute is sought to be raised only on account of calculation of compensation by relying upon the income of the deceased. It is not disputed that deceased Pankaj Bansal was carrying on business as a sole proprietor of the firm and was filing income tax returns. The accident in the present case took place on 6th October, 2005 when his car struck with a rashly driven Matador and Pankaj Bansal died at the spot. As per the evidence on record, the deceased being an income tax assessee was filing returns and for the period from 1st April, 2003 to 31st March, 2004, his income from business and profession was shown as Rs. 2,56,566/-, from 1st April, 2004 to 31st March, 2005 the income from business and profession was shown as Rs. 3,51,624/- and for the year in which the accident took place i.e. from 1st April, 2005 to 31st March, 2006, the income from business and profession was shown as Rs. 3,20,023/-. The argument of the learned Counsel for the appellant that income tax return for a period subsequent to accident and death of Pankaj Bansal shows that his business had not suffered and steady income was continuing. Accordingly, to assess the compensation, the Tribunal has wrongly calculated the annual income of the deceased, However, such an argument cannot be accepted for the simple reason that this income was assessed for the financial year 2005-06 was partly for the period when deceased Pankaj Bansal was alive. There is no other material on record produced by the appellant to show that even after the death of Pankaj Bansal, the business continued and same level of income was generated. Not only this, even this has not been disputed that business was being carried on by the deceased Pankaj Bansal as a sole proprietor of the firm for supply of equipments and instruments of heart and kidney to various hospitals, which apparently was a touring job. With this material on record, I do not find any illegality has been committed by the learned Tribunal in assessing the compensation payable to the respondent/claimants. Accordingly, the appeal is dismissed. Appeal dismissed.;


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