Point of Law: Road leading to a stone quarry and workshop premises can be treated as public place for the purpose of S. 2(34) of Motor Vehicles Act. S.2(34) of Motor Vehicles Act defines public place as follows: "Public place" means a road, street, way or other place, whether a thoroughfare or not, to which public have a right of access and includes any place or stand at which passengers are picked up or set down by a stage carriage.

JUDGMENT :

Appellants are additional petitioners 2 to 5 being legal heirs of Abraham Kuruvila, the original petitioner in O.P(MV).No.1822/2004. They are aggrieved by award dated 17.12.2011 passed by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Pathanamthitta. Respondents 1 to 3 are arrayed as respondents herein.

2. Brief facts:

Petitioner was a 54 year old coolie worker at the time of the accident. On 29.11.2003 at about 10.30 a.m while the petitioner was doing loading and unloading work in the property of Puranthadayil Kunjumol at Niranam Central keeping his right hand on the left side body of a lorry bearing Reg.No.Kl-4/B 6453, another lorry bearing Reg.No.KL-7/B 6782 named "Puthenpurakal", driven by the 1st respondent crushed his right hand pressing hard on the other lorry. Both vehicles came there for unloading building materials. As a result of the accident, the petitioner sustained serious injuries on his right hand. The accident occurred solely due to the negligence of the driver of the lorry bearing Reg.No.KL-7/B 6782, i.e., the 1st respondent, according to the additional petitioners. The 2nd respondent is the owner of the offending vehicle and 3rd respondent is the insurer. Hence all the respondents are jointly and severally liable to compensate the petitioner. The petitioner claimed Rs.1 lakh as compensation.

3. Respondents 1 and 2 were set exparte by the Tribunal. The 3rd respondent insurance company filed written statement and resisted the petition after admitting policy. Liability was disputed on the ground of violation of policy conditions alleging that the place of accident is not a public place as defined in the Motor Vehicles Act.

4. The Tribunal marked Exts.A1 to A10 series on the part of the appellants and finally granted award to the tune of Rs.56,020/- as against claim of Rs.1 lakh.

5. The learned Tribunal found that the 3rd respondent is not bound to indemnify the insured since the accident occured not in a public place, as defined in the Motor Vehicles Act.

6. The learned counsel for the appellants would point out that the finding of the Tribunal in issue No.3 to the effect that the rd respondent has no liability to indemnify the insured is an erroneous finding and the same requires reconsideration to fasten liability upon the insurance company. In this regard, the learned counsel for the appellants placed a decision reported in [2009(1) KLT 573], Rajan v. John and zealously urged that the term `public place' as defined under Section 2(34) of the M.V Act, 1988, has to be understood with reference to the places to which a vehicle has access.

7. Thus the relevant question to be answered is whether a private premises is to be held as public place for the purpose of S.2(34) of the Motor Vehicles Act?

8. In the Rajan's case (supra), the Division Bench of this Court considered two question while dealing with claim raised by an injured when he sustained injuries while unloading marble in the house premises of a person, who purchased and transported marble to his house in the same truck and held as under:

"In one case this court held that when entry of transport vehicle is permitted in factory premises, such premises constitute a "public place" for the purpose of liability for compensation payable by the Insurance Company under S.147 of the Motor Vehicles Act. Similarly, in the other two cases this court held that road leading to a stone quarry and workshop premises can be treated as public place for the purpose of S.2(34) of the Motor Vehicles Act. S.2(34) of the Motor Vehicles Act defines public place as follows: "Public place" means a road, street, way or other place, whether a thoroughfare or not, to which the public have a right of access and includes any place or stand at which passengers are picked up or set down by a stage carriage". From the above we are of the view that public place does not have a restricted meaning inasmuch as it is not to be taken as a place where public have uncontrolled access at all times. "Public