JUDGMENT

SHIVA KIRTI SINGH, J.

1. Heard learned counsel for the appellants and learned counsel for the respondent-Himachal Road Transport Corporation.

2. The appellants are claimants. They are aggrieved by the judgment and order under appeal whereby the High Court reversed the findings given by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (II) at Shimla in MACT No. 68-S/2 of1995 and has set aside the Award dated 30.11.1998 whereby the appellants were allowed compensation of Rs.2,74,000/- including the interim compensation, if already awarded to them along with interest at the rate of12% p.a. from the date of the claim petition.

3. According to the learned counsel for the appellants learned High Court was not justified in substituting its own findings in place of those of the Tribunal by disbelieving statement of PW.2 Shobha Ram and PW.6Hemant Kumar. The main criticism of the High Court judgment is on the ground that the case should have been decided on the basis of preponderance of probabilities as was done by the Tribunal whereas High Court has required a much higher degree of proof as if it was dealing with a criminal trial.

The order under appeal has also been criticized on the ground that reasonings are perverse and that the High Court failed to keep in view the apparent incorrectness of the defence plea which was of total denial of the case of the claimants that the bus of the respondent was involved in the accident with the motor cycle of the deceased and the deceased died due to such accident. The judgment of the High Court is further in criticism on the ground that the Court has not given due weightage to the fact that the bus and its driver were detained almost immediately after the occurrence and FIR was also registered against the driver.

4. On the other hand, learned counsel for the respondent-Corporation has taken a counter stand that as a First Appellate Court the High Court was bound to enter into evidence, evaluate it carefully and give its own findings with reasons for the same. According to him the reasons are sound for the view taken by the High Court which has held that there is no direct evidence to show that the bus was involved in the accident and even if that is presumed, the evidence and the circumstances show that negligence was on the part of the deceased in trying to overtake the bus on a very narrow road in the town of Shimla immediately after the bus has started moving when the traffic signal turned green.

5. We have carefully gone through the materials on record and the appeal including counter affidavit as well as statement of case of both the parties.

6. According to the case of the appellants/claimants the deceased Dalip Singh lost his life immediately after the accident as a result of rash and negligent driving of a bus belonging to the Corporation driven by Lachoo Ram respondent no.2 on 12.07.1995. It is also their case that the accident occurred near traffic lights on the narrow Cart Road at the point near Gurudwara Singh Sabha and State Bus Terminal, Shimla, which is hardly 100-150 yards from the Gurudwara. Both, the deceased on a motor cycle and the bus had stopped at the traffic light. When the light turned green, the vehicles started. The respondent no.2 allegedly moved the bus very fast in a rash and negligent manner and struck against the motorcycle by its side. The deceased fell down and was fatally wounded leading to immediate death.

7. The case of the respondent is that there was no accident involving the bus of the Corporation and in the facts of the case there could be no question of rash and negligent driving attributed to respondent no.2. The claim for compensation was resisted on both the grounds - One, that the bus was not involved in the accident and second, that the accident did not take place due to rash and negligent driving of respondent no.2. The registration of the FIR against the driver soon after the accident was not denied and only a plea was taken that the criminal case was registere