IMPORTANT POINT
The court affirmed the Tribunal's compensation award while clarifying that claimants are not entitled to interest on loss of future prospects, emphasizing the insurer's limited contestation rights under the Motor Vehicles Act.

JUDGMENT :

BUDI HABUNG, J.

Heard Mr. V. Devnath, learned counsel for the appellant. I have also heard Mr. B. N. Sarmah, learned counsel for the respondent nos. 1 to 5/claimants and Ms. Moajungla, learned counsel for the respondent no. 6.

2. By filing this appeal under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988, the appellant has assailed the judgment and award dated 21.04.2022 passed by the learned Member, Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Tuensang, Nagaland, in MAC case no. 16/2019.

3. The case leading to the filing of this appeal in brief is that the respondent nos. 1 to 5 as claimants filed MAC case no. 16/2019, under Section 166 read with Section 144 of the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988 before the learned Member, Motor Accident Claim Tribunal, Tuensang, Nagaland, claiming compensation on account of alleged accidental death of her son late Munna Sarmah in road traffic accident on 05.04.2019, involving the motorcycle bearing registration No. AS-07M/6831. The deceased was travelling on the said motorcycle as a pillion rider. The appellants were impleaded as party respondent nos. 3 and 4 respectively.

4. The appellant contested the claim petition by filing written statement and raised preliminary objection on the question of jurisdiction of the Tribunal. However, on conclusion of the trial, the learned Tribunal by judgment and award dated 21.04.2022, awarded a compensation amount of Rs. 36,98,800/- with interest at the rate of 9 % per annum from the date of filing of the claim petition until payment of the awarded amount, and directed the appellants-Divisional Manager, Oriental Insurance Company Limited, Divisional Office, Dimapur, Nagaland to deposit the awarded amount along with the interest within 30 (thirty) days from the date of the said order.

5. Being aggrieved, the appellants filed this appeal on the following grounds:

(i) That the claim petition was filed under Section 166 read with Section 140 of the M.V. Act 1988, as such, to prove rash and negligent driving by conclusive evidences is a condition precedent. But the claimants have failed to discharge the onus to prove rash and negligent of the driver, and the Learned Member failed to appreciate this legal aspect of the matter.

(ii) There was no final investigation report of the accident before, nor any site plan or a report of extensive investigation, but by overlooking this vital aspect of the case the Award was passed on the basis of a mere accident information report and the police report that does not disclose anything about rash and negligent driving of the said motorcycle.

(iii) That the accident took place in Dhalpur, under Lakhimpur district of Assam, the treatment and other medical procedures of the injured (now deceased) were followed up at Lakhimpur, Assam, the permanent residential address of the respondents are also at Dhalpur in the district of Lakhimpur, Assam and the claimants/respondents did not exhibit any documentary evidence showing that she was the residential of Tuensang. But it was overlooked and passed the impugned Judgment & Award dated 21.04.2022 exceeding its jurisdiction.

(iv) There were no conclusive evidences showing that the deceased was agriculturist and he earned income from agriculture cultivation, however, the Learned Tribunal assessed the loss of income of the claimant basing on a mere certificate issued by Mouzadar. The salary cum employment certificate issued by the GREF does not disclose the actual income of the deceased nor the documents of income was proved by the author before the Tribunal. However, in absence of any conclusive proof of the income of the deceased, the learned Tribunal passed the impugned judgment and award merely on assumption, accepting the income of the deceased as Rs. 16,000/- per month merely basing on the pleadings of the claimants.

(v) The interest at the rate of 9% per annum from the date of filing of the claim till