JUDGMENT :

Rabindranath Samanta, J.

1. Challenge in these two appeals being FMA No. 1450 of 2007 and FMA No. 890 of 2009 is against the judgment and award dated 14.06.2007 passed by the learned Judge, Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (hereinafter be referred to as the Tribunal), 11th Court, Alipore in MACC No. 99 of 2007. By the impugned judgment the learned Tribunal directed the Insurance Company i.e. United India Insurance Company Limited to pay Rs.3,96,000/- as compensation to the claimants Smt. Kamala Roy and others and to pay interest @6% per annum on the awarded amount of money from the date of filing of the claim application on 01.07.2002 till the date of payment.

2. However, the learned Tribunal observed in the body of the judgment that the Insurance Company was at liberty to realise the amount of compensation of award from the owner of the offending vehicle if it was found during any independent enquiry that the insurance policy was forged.

3. By preferring the appeal being FMA No. 1450 of 2007 the Insurance Company assails the findings of the learned Tribunal on the ground that the learned Tribunal has erred in not recording the finding that the insurance policy produced on behalf of the claimants is a forged document. On such ground the Insurance Company in the appeal seeks setting aside of the impugned judgment and award. On the other hand, the claimants in appeal being FMA No. 890 of 2009 pray for enhancement of the compensation amount.

4. Before I proceed to pen the judgment it will be apposite to record that claimant No.4 Astami Roy and claimant No.5 Rajib Roy who were minors at the time of the filing of the claim application on 01.07.2002 have now attained majority. The memorandum of appeal or any connected paper be corrected recording their name as major. They be treated as major so far as the appeals on hand are concerned.

5. The facts which led the filing of the claim application under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act may be summarised as under:

On 30.12.2001 at about 12:30 hrs a matador van bearing registration No. WMV-217 was proceeding along Kingsway (Gostha Pal Sarani), at an excessive speed and driven in rash and negligent manner endangering to human life and safety. While the vehicle reached near Eden Gardens Gate No.4A, then the vehicle knocked down and ran over a person namely Sudhir Roy @ Sudhir Kumar Roy. Immediately after the accident he was removed to SSKM Hospital where the attending doctor declared him brought dead.

6. Owing to rash and negligent driving on the part of the driver of the offending vehicle the accident took place and the victim died because of the accident. The victim died at the age of 44 years. He was a Group-D staff under P&T Department, G.P.O and he used to earn Rs.4745/- per month.

7. On the allegations of rash and negligent driving on the part of the driver of the offending vehicle an FIR was lodged at Hastings Police Station and the FIR was registered as Hastings PS Case No. 409 dated 30.12.2001 under Sections 279/304A of Indian Penal Code. At the time of the accident the offending vehicle was insured with United India Insurance Company Limited.

8. Owing to sudden and untimely death of the victim, the claimants who happen to be his widow, three daughters and a son fell in acute financial crisis. On the facts as above the claimants sought for compensation of Rs.4,50,000/- with interest thereon.

9. The owner of the offending vehicle namely Sakti Chakraborty contested the claim case before the learned Tribunal by filing a written statement wherein it stated that at the time of the accident the vehicle being matador bearing registration No. WMV-217 was covered under the policy of insurance issued by the United India Insurance Company Limited. However, he denied the allegations that the accident took place due to rash and negligent driving on the part of the driver of the vehicle.