Married siblings residing independently are generally not considered dependents for compensation claims unless evidence indicates otherwise.

Judgment :

(Arvind Kumar Verma, J.)

1. This is claimants’ appeal seeking enhancement of compensation passed by Additional Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, (FTC), Dhamtari, (CG), (for short, the Claims Tribunal) in Claim Case No.106/2018 vide impugned award dated 22.02.2019 (Annexure P-1).

2. As per the pleadings of the claim application, the accident occurred on 01.12.2011. The deceased by name Vinod Jaswani, while proceeding on his motorcycle, was knocked down to death by the vehicle Metador bearing registration No.CG-05/D-0124 (in short, offending vehicle), owned by Non-applicant No.2, driven by non-applicant No.1 and insured by Non-applicant No.3/insurer, which led to the Claim Petition preferred by the appellants / claimants seeking total compensation of Rs.22,50,000/- stating, inter alia, that the deceased was a agriculturist and also working as a contractor and thereby earning Rs.300/- per day.

3. The claim application was resisted by the non-applicants on various grounds.

4. Learned Claims Tribunal framed issues on the basis of pleadings and decided the same in favour of the appellants/claimants in Clam Case and awarded the compensation of Rs.1,05,000/- along with interest @ 6% per annum from the date of award till its realisation while directing the Non-applicant No.3/Insurance Company to pay the amount of compensation.

5. Learned counsel for the appellants submits that on the date of incident, deceased was aged about 33 years and he was unmarried. Deceased was a agriculturist and also working as a contractor and thereby earning Rs.300/- per day and despite that the learned Claims Tribunal has not awarded any amount towards his income. Appellants/claimants are the real sister of deceased and appellant No.4 being a widow, is fully dependent upon income of the deceased. The Claims Tribunal erred in awarding very less amount towards the head of love and affection, funeral expenses and the amounts awarded under other conventional heads are also on lower side, which ought to be enhanced suitably.

6. On the other hand, learned counsel for respondent No.3/Insurance Company contended that siblings of the deceased are married, they are residing with their husbands and children in their matrimonial home, hence, they are not dependent upon income of the deceased. Learned Claims Tribunal based on pleadings and material/evidence available has rightly passed the claim and awarded just and proper compensation to the claimants, which does call for any interference.

7. I have heard learned counsel for the respective parties and perused the record of the Tribunal including the evidence adduced by the parties minutely.

8. Question arises before this Court whether the married sisters of the deceased would be dependent upon the income of deceased or not ?. AW-1/Madhu Vajirani (appellant No.5 herein) in her evidence deposed

9. It is undisputed fact that on the date of alleged incident deceased was aged about 33 years and he was unmarried. Appellants/claimants are sisters of the deceased, they all are married and resided with their husband at her matrimonial house. Being the brother, deceased occasionally helped his sisters, but there is no any admissible piece of evidence available showing that appellant/claimants are dependent upon income of the deceased.

10. Hon’ble Supreme Court in case of the New India Assurance Company Limited versus Anand Pal & Ors., passed on 04.12.2023 [SLP (Civil No.7805/2022)] held as under:

“On the above, it is necessary for us to be conscious that there are two family registers. This would indicate that the victim resided separately as was noted by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal. The siblings of the victim were older and were married with their own respective families. In these circumstances, they being dependent on the victim’s earnings is unlikely particularly when the victim resided separately.”

11. In the absence of the evidence to the contrary, married sisters who are older than the deceased and resided with her husb