Gujarat High Court
Judgename :M.K.SHAH, N.H.BHATT
S.M.VYAS - Appellant
Versus
SUDHABEN SUKETHU SUTARIA - Respondent
First Appeal 445 of 1974
Decided On : 06/27/1979
Motor Vehicles Act – Accident – Claim of Compensation - Guilty of contributory negligence - Appeals are filed by original opponent and concerned Insurance Company against awards given by Motor Accident Claims Tribunal at awarding with interest and costs to claimant - Connection submits that there is evidence on record showing that scooter at relevant time carried four persons though it is not permissible to carry more than two persons including driver on a scooter as per rules Motor Vehicles Act and that therefore Tribunal ought to have held that this breach on part of driver of scooter amounted to negligence attributable to accident itself - In submission when a vehicle meant for carrying two persons carries four persons it is not only possible or plausible that driver who carries them will be guilty of contributory negligence but in all probabilities he will be guilty of contributory negligence and in instant case therefore Tribunal on being satisfied at time of accident was driving scooter carrying thereon besides himself his wife and his two minor children ought to have held that was guilty of contributory negligence – Held, There is a clear finding based on assessment of evidence by Tribunal with which assessment we are entirely in agreement that it was Ambassador car which came from opposite direction with excessive speed with headlights fully on and passing over to wrong side of road dashed against scooter which was being driven on correct side of road - This position is borne out by notes made in within a short time of accident which did reveal that car had crossed over to other side of road at time of accident and it was found lying towards right hand side of road so far as car is concerned while scooter lay on its left side - These are primary facts and they tell their own story and it would be therefore for opponents to rebut presumption of negligence on part of car driver which they have failed to do in instant case - Again there is cogent and reliable evidence on record of three eye witnesses examined on behalf of claimants clearly establishing that accident happened because of exclusive negligence on part of car driver and there was no question of any contributory negligence on part of scooter driver - Appeal dismissed
( 1 ) ). These two first appeals are filed by the original opponent No. 2 (owner of the vehicle) and the concerned Insurance Company (insurer of the vehicle) against awards given by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal at Ahmedabad awarding Rs. 35 728 with interest and costs to claimant Sudhaben in M. A. C. T. No. 1-A/144 of 1971 and also awarding a sum of Rs. 47 500 to claimant Sukethu in M. A. C. T. Application No. 1-A/145/71 with similar order for costs and interest.
( 2 ) MR. Bhatt in this connection submits that there is evidence on record showing that the scooter at the relevant time carried four persons though it is not permissible to carry more than two persons including the driver on a scooter as per rules under the Motor Vehicles Act and that therefore the Tribunal ought to have held that this breach on the part of the driver of the scooter amounted to negligence attributable to the accident itself. In Mr. Bhatts submission when a vehicle meant for carrying two persons carries four persons it is not only possible or plausible that the driver who carries them will be guilty of contributory negligence but in all probabilities he will be guilty of contributory negligence and in the instant case therefore the Tribunal on being satisfied that Sukethu at the time of the accident was driving the scooter carrying thereon besides himself his wife and his two minor children ought to have held that he was guilty of contributory negligence. Mr. Bhatt in this connection draws our attention to the case of Amthiben Maganlal Wd/o Maganlal Pranlal Mistry and Ors. v. Supdt. Geophysicist O. N. G. C. and Ors. 17 G. L. R. 910. This was a case in which an O. N. G. C. Truck and a jeep met with an accident and it was shown that the driver and two others were occupying the front seat of the jeep; and it was observed that Even if it had not contravened any statutory rule they were exposed to some greater risk by sitting in that fashion of being thrown out in case of collision. The driver of the jeep would have also some difficulty to change or control his gears between the two seats in front. Just as actionable negligence required the foreeseability of harm to others so contributory negligence required forseeability of harm to oneself. A person was guilty of contributory negligence if he ought reasonably to have foreseen that if he did not act as a reasonable prudent man he might hurt himself and in his reckonings he must take into account the possibility of others being careless. Therefore once negligence was proved then no matter whether it was actionable negligence or contributory negligence the person who was guilty of it must bear his proper share of responsibility for the consequences. The consequences did not depend on forseeability but on causation. This principle would be clearly applicable in the present case because the deceased by occupying extreme right hand seat together with the injured witness who was in the middle on this single 30 seat had exposed himself to some greater risk in case of such collision.
( 3 ) IN our opinion merely because apart from the driver and one adult member on the opinion seat two children were carried on a scooter it cannot be said that the driver of the scooter was guilty of contributory negligence if the scooter met with an accident on account of the negligence on the part of the driver of the other vehicle as is found in the instant case unless there is evidence on record establishing the same. Solely because breach of a rule is made it cannot lead to an inference that the breach has culminated into contributory negligence in an accident of this type. In the decision cited the facts are entirely different. There the deceased had by his own act of sitting in a particular position exposed himself to danger and had thereby contributed to the negligence. The ratio laid down therein does not apply to the facts of the present case. Here there is a clear finding based on assessment of evidence
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