Panel awards Rs 12.31 lakh compensation to kin of accident victim

New Delhi, Sep 3 (PTI) A Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) has awarded around Rs 12.31 lakh to the family members of a man who died in a road accident in 2014.

Presiding officer Shelly Arora was hearing the petition filed by the family members of Liyakat Ali, who died after a truck hit his motorcycle on August 23, 2014.

In an order on September 2, the tribunal said, "It is a well-established legal principle that negligence in motor accident cases should be determined based on the preponderance of probabilities, not on proof beyond a reasonable doubt." Facts and circumstances, it said, must be considered in a broad and practical manner.

"It is also settled that proceedings under the Motor Vehicles Act are different from regular civil suits and are not strictly governed by the technical rules of the Indian Evidence Act," the MACT said.

Considering the evidence, the order held that "rash and speedy" driving of the offending vehicle had caused the fatal accident.

The tribunal computed a total compensation of around Rs 12.31 lakh under various heads.

It rejected the argument of the insurer, Shriram General Insurance Co Ltd, that the truck driver was plying the truck with a fake driving license.

"It cannot be presumed that the driving license was fake merely on the basis of a photocopy of the report, which only mentions that the license was not issued from (a particular) office," it added.

Even the chargesheet filed by the investigating officer, the MACT said, does not attribute any offence under penal provisions against the driver for possessing a fake driving license.

It said as the company admitted the validity of the insurance policy, it was liable to indemnify the insured and to pay the entire compensation amount. PTI MNR MNR AMK AMK