Statutory provisions providing more advantageous treatment must be allowed to operate fully in determining compensation for motor accidents.

ORDER :

UDAY U. LALIT, J.

1. Leave granted.

2. This appeal challenges the judgment and order dated 24.04.2018 passed by the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad dismissing First Appeal No. 2129 of 2018. Said appeal was preferred by the present appellant challenging the determination by Motor Accidents Claim Tribunal, Allahabad (“the Tribunal”, for short) vide its award dated 17.01.2018, whereby compensation in the sum of Rs.24,43,432/-was awarded with 7% interest, while considering the claim in respect of an accident which resulted in the death of one Jairam Shukla.

3. While assessing the compensation, reliance was placed by the Tribunal on Rule 220A of the U.P. Motor Vehicles Rules, 1998 (“the Rules” for short). For the present purposes, we are concerned with Rule 3(iii) of the Rules which is to the following effect:

“(3) The future prospects of a deceased, shall be added in the actual salary or minimum wages of the deceased as under:

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(iii) More than 50 years of age: 20% of the salary.”

4. The basic ground of challenge by the appellant is that sub-rule 3(iii) of Rule 220A is contrary to the conclusions arrived at by the Constitution Bench of this Court in National Insurance Company. Ltd. vs. Pranay Sethi reported in (2017) 16 SCC 680 (“Pranay Sethi”, for short).

5. Considering the importance of the questions involved, this Court appointed Mr. A.D.N. Rao, learned Advocate to assist the Court as Amicus Curiae.

6. Mr. Rao has submitted a note which states that apart from the State of U.P. similar provision exists in the State of Uttarakhand which had adopted the Rules in its application to that State after reorganization.

7. Mr. Rao has invited our attention to the decision of this Court in Pranay Sethi and specially paragraphs 31 and 55 to 58 which for facility are quoted hereunder:

“31. Though we have devoted some space in analyzing the precedential value of the judgments, that is not the thrust of the controversy. We are required to keenly dwell upon the heart of the issue that emerges for consideration. The seminal controversy before us relates to the issue where the deceased was self-employed or was a person on fixed salary without provision for annual increment, etc., what should be the addition as regards the future prospects. In Sarla Verma [Sarla Verma v. DTC, (2009) 6 SCC 121 : (2009) 2 SCC (Civ) 770 : (2009) 2 SCC (Cri) 1002], the Court has made it as a rule that 50% of actual salary could be added if the deceased had a permanent job and if the age of the deceased is between 40-50 years and no addition to be made if the deceased was more than 50 years. It is further ruled that where deceased was self-employed or had a fixed salary (without provision for annual increment, etc.) the courts will usually take only the actual income at the time of death and the departure is permissible only in rare and exceptional cases involving special circumstances.

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55. Section 168 of the Act deals with the concept of “just compensation” and the same has to be determined on the foundation of fairness, reasonableness and equitability on acceptable legal standard because such determination can never be in arithmetical exactitude. It can never be perfect. The aim is to achieve an acceptable degree of proximity to arithmetical precision on the basis of materials brought on record in an individual case. The conception of “just compensation” has to be viewed through the prism of fairness, reasonableness and non-violation of the principle of equitability. In a case of death, the legal heirs of the claimants cannot expect a windfall. Simultaneously, the compensation granted cannot be an apology for compensation. It cannot be a pittance. Though the discretion vested in the tribunal is quite wide, yet it is obligatory on the part of the tribunal to be guided by the expression, that is, “just compensation”. The determination has to be on the foundation of evidence brought on record as regards the age and income of the deceased and thereafter the apposite