JUDGMENT

Altamas Kabir, J. —

1. Notice was issued in the Special Leave Petition (Civil) No.8660 of 2009 on 2nd April, 2009, confined to the question regarding the Petitioner’s liability by way of contributory negligence in the accident which occurred on 18th July, 2004. Special Leave Petition (Civil) Nos.864-865 of 2010 were also filed by the Petitioner against National Insurance Company Ltd., Jatin and the heirs of Mukesh Jain, deceased. A brief background of the facts will help us to understand and appreciate the case of the Petitioner better. For the sake of convenience, the facts have been taken from Special Leave Petition (Civil) No.8660 of 2009.

2. On 18th July, 2004, at about 1.20 p.m. the deceased, Mukesh Jain, was riding his two-wheeler scooter No.DAI 1835, with his son, Shashank Jain, as pillion rider. According to the prosecution story, when they had reached the SDM’s Office, Geeta Colony, Delhi, a motorcycle, bearing registration No. DL-7S-G-3282, being driven in a very rash and negligent manner, tried to overtake the scooter and in that process struck against the scooter with great force, as a result whereof the deceased and his son were thrown on to the road and the d