Delhi road death victim's kin get Rs 64.7 lakh in claim

New Delhi, Dec 7 (PTI) A Delhi Motor Accident Claims Tribunal has awarded Rs 64.71 lakh as compensation to the family of a 37-year-old gardener who died in a 2020 road accident in R K Puram here.

Presiding officer Dr Shirish Aggarwal awarded the claim while hearing the claim petition filed by the kin of Jagdish Prakash, who suffered fatal injuries after his bicycle was hit by a car on January 24, 2020.

In a judgment dated November 21, the tribunal said, "It stands proved on the touchstone of preponderance of probability that Jagdish sustained fatal injuries in the accident which took place due to rash and negligent driving of the offending vehicle." According to the prosecution, Jagdish, who was employed as a senior gardener with the Army Welfare Education Society, was killed by a rashly driven car.

Critically wounded, he was moved to Safdarjung Hospital, where he succumbed, it said.

Relying on Supreme Court precedents on the standard of proof in motor accident claim cases, the tribunal said that strict criminal standards do not apply in claims cases and that the claimants were required to establish their case on a preponderance of probabilities.

The tribunal noted that Jagdish was the sole breadwinner of his family and had eight dependents – both his parents, wife, and five children.

It awarded the claimants a total compensation of Rs 64.71 lakh, a large portion of which, Rs 60.48 lakh, was for loss of dependency.

The tribunal held that the offending vehicle, owned by a representative of the US Embassy, was not insured on the date of the accident, so the driver and owner of the vehicle were liable to pay the full amount. PTI MDB MNR VN VN