Road accident: SC enhances compensation to man

Looking to the nature of injuries and the permanent disablement which the claimant has suffered, i.e., the lower limb is completely paralyzed while his upper limb is partially paralyzed having 100 per cent permanent disability resulting in bodily movements being hampered, the bench said.The counsel for the claimant sought compensation for loss of future earnings and said he feels difficulty in moving from one court to another.

New Delhi, Jul 6 (PTI)The Supreme Court has enhanced the compensation awarded to a man who had suffered permanent disability due to a road accident from Rs 23.20 lakh to Rs 51.62 lakh. A bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and J K Maheshwari noted that the victim was planning to become an IAS officer but on account of the injuries in the temporal region and the permanent disability suffered, he was unable to do his studies as expected or planned. "After sincere efforts, he could pass the LLB and started the advocate profession. A judicial notice can be taken of the fact that for a proficient advocate the person must be physically fit as he is required to move frequently to attend the professional work reaching from one Court to another, and for movements to complete other professional commitments. "Looking to the nature of injuries and the permanent disablement which the claimant has suffered, i.e., the lower limb is completely paralyzed while his upper limb is partially paralyzed having 100 per cent permanent disability resulting in bodily movements being hampered," the bench said.

The counsel for the claimant sought compensation for loss of future earnings and said he feels difficulty in moving from one court to another. The lawyer said the claimant feels handicapped in free movement and approaching clients which have affected his ability to earn.

The top court said the capacity of the claimant being an advocate cannot be equated with other practicing advocates having no deformity in the same profession. "The claimant is required to make extraordinary efforts to attend the proceedings in the Court and to come up to the expectations of the client," the bench said.

It noted that the father of the appellant was a Professor and the mother was an IAS officer and has been nurtured and brought up in a status enjoyed by his parents.

"In view of the foregoing calculation, the amount determined for payment of the compensation in pecuniary heads comes to Rs.46,62,000/­ and in non­pecuniary heads, the sum comes to Rs.5,00,000. "Thus, in our view, the total compensation comes to Rs.51,62,000/­. If we deduct the amount of Rs.23,20,000/­ awarded by the High Court then the enhanced amount comes to Rs.28,42,000," the bench said.

The man, now an advocate, had approached the apex court challenging an order of the high court that enhanced the compensation granted to the tune of Rs 9 lakh by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Chandigarh to Rs. 23.20 lakh. The accident victim had moved the MACT seeking compensation to the tune of Rs. two crores on account of permanent disability caused to him arising out of a road accident that occurred on November 10, 1996, when he was five and half years of age.PTI PKS RKS RKS

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