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CDJ 2026 MHC 5920
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| Court : High Court of Judicature at Madras |
| Case No : CMA. No. 1092 of 2018 |
| Judges: THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE N. ANAND VENKATESH |
| Parties : The Divisional Manager, United India Insurance Company Ltd., Puducherry Versus Rajamanikam & Others |
| Appearing Advocates : For the Appellant: J. Chandran, Advocate. For the Respondents: R2 & R6, No Appearance, R1 – Died. |
| Date of Judgment : 03-08-2026 |
| Head Note :- |
Motor Vehicles Act - Section 173 -
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| Summary :- |
1. Statutes / Acts / Rules Mentioned:
- Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act
2. Catch Words:
- negligence, compensation, nexus, motor accident, liability, interest, quantum of compensation
3. Summary:
- The insurance company appealed against the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal’s award of Rs.14,05,200 to the deceased’s family, alleging lack of nexus between the injuries and death and excessiveness of the quantum.
- The Tribunal had found the accident caused by rash and negligent driving of the offending lorry driver and awarded compensation under various heads with interest at 7.5% per annum.
- The appellant argued the Tribunal erred in attributing full negligence to the driver and in fixing the amount.
- The Court examined the medical certificate, post‑mortem report, eyewitness testimony, FIR and accident inspection report, finding the injuries were the sole cause of death and the negligence clearly attributable to the offending driver.
- The Court held the Tribunal’s findings were not perverse and the quantum of compensation was just and reasonable.
- Consequently, the petition was dismissed and the insurer was directed to deposit the awarded amount with interest within four weeks.
4. Conclusion:
Petition Dismissed |
| Judgment :- |
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(Prayer: Civil Miscellaneous Appeal filed under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, against the Decree and Judgment made in MCOP No.489 of 2015 on 18.01.2018, on the file of the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, II Additional District Judge, Puducherry.)
1. This appeal has been filed by the Insurance Company against the Award passed by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal/II Additional District Judge, Puducherry in MCOP No.489 of 2015, dated 18.01.2018, questioning the liability to pay compensation on the ground that the cause of death had no nexus to the injuries sustained by the deceased due to the accident.
2. The 1st and 2nd claimants are the parents, the 3rd claimant is the wife, the 4th and 5th claimants are the children and the 6th claimant is the mother-inlaw of the deceased Murugan.
3. The case of the claimants is that on 12.05.2015, the deceased was proceeding on his two wheeler at Cuddalore Main Road and at about 14.45 hours, near Mudhaliarpet, the offending vehicle which was a lorry was driven in a rash and negligent manner and it dashed on the two wheeler. As a result, the deceased was thrown out of the vehicle and he sustained serious head injuries and he was admitted in the hospital and he ultimately succumbed to the injuries on 15.05.2015. An FIR came to be registered in Crime No.234 of 2015 against the driver of the offending vehicle. It is under these circumstances, the claim petition came to be filed before the Tribunal.
4. The Tribunal on considering the facts and circumstances of the case and on appreciation of oral and documentary evidence, came to a conclusion that the accident had taken place only due to the rash and negligent driving on the part of the driver of the offending vehicle.
5. Having rendered the above finding, the Tribunal fixed the total compensation at Rs.14,05,200/- under various heads as follows:
Compensation awarded under the head
| Amount (in Rs.)
| Loss of Income
| 12,85,200
| Loss of Love and Affection
| 80,000
| Funeral Expenses
| 15,000
| Loss of Estate
| 15,000
| Towards Transportation
| 10,000
| Total
| 14,05,200
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6. The above compensation was directed to be paid along with interest at the rate of 7.5% per annum.
7. Aggrieved by the same, the present appeal has been filed before this Court.
8. The learned counsel for the appellant submitted that the Tribunal went wrong in attributing the entire negligence against the driver of the offending vehicle. It was further submitted that the compensation that has been fixed by the Tribunal under the various heads was excessive and it requires reduction. The learned counsel also submitted that there was no nexus between the injuries sustained in the accident and the cause of deceased’s death.
9. The accident in this case happened on 12.05.2015 and the deceased ultimately died in the hospital on 15.05.2015. On a careful perusal of Ex.R1 which is the Medical Certificate of the cause of death and Ex.R3 which is Postmortem Report, clearly reveals that the injuries sustained by the deceased were the sole cause for his death.
10. Insofar as the negligence is concerned, the Tribunal took into consideration the evidence of the eye witness PW1. The Tribunal also took into consideration the FIR that was marked as Ex.P1 and the Accident Inspection Report which was marked as EX.P4 and came to a conclusion that the accident had taken place only due to the rash and negligent driving on the part of the driver of the offending vehicle. The Tribunal came to this conclusion more particularly, since there was no contra evidence available on the side of the respondents. This finding rendered by the Tribunal cannot be said to be perverse warranting the interference of this Court.
11. Insofar as the quantum of compensation that was fixed by the Tribunal, this Court finds that the same is just and reasonable and it does not require the interference of this Court.
12. Accordingly this Civil Miscellaneous Petition stands dismissed. There shall be a direction to the appellant Insurance Company to deposit the entire amount along with accrued interest within a period of four (4) weeks from the date of receipt of copy of this judgment. On such deposit, the respondents shall be permitted to withdraw the same. The guidelines issued by the Division Bench of this Court in CMA No.2064 of 2026, dated 08.07.2026 shall be strictly complied with respect to disbursement of the compensation amount to the claimant. No Costs.
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