Impleading the Insurance Company as a necessary and proper party in Motor Accident Claims cases, and the allowance of impleading at any stage in the interest of justice.

PARAMJEET SINGH, J.

1. Present revision petition has been filed under Article 227 of the Constitution of India for setting aside order dated 21.09.2012 (Annexure P/3) passed by learned Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Gurdaspur, whereby application filed by the petitioners for supplying the particulars of Insurance Company and for incorporating respondent No. 3 i.e. National Insurance Company in the title of the claim petition as party, has been dismissed. The petitioners, who happen to be the claimants in a Motor Accident Claims Petition, filed an application for impleading respondent No. 3-National Insurance Company Limited, Branch Office III, BMC Chowk, Jalandhar through its Branch Manager. The case set up by the petitioners is that respondent No. 2 has supplied the particulars of the Insurance Company, therefore, request was made to implead Insurance Company as party respondent. Respondent No. 2 did not raise any objection. However, respondent No. 2-A has submitted that at the stage when the entire trial has come to end, the Insurance Company cannot be impleaded as a party respondent. Respondent No. 2-A has wrongly been impleaded as owner of the offending vehicle and he was not owner of the vehicle at the relevant time.

2. It is well known fact that in the cases of Motor Accident Claims, the Insurance Company is generally impleaded as a party as and when the details of the same are furnished by the owner or the driver. In the present case respondent No. 2 has supplied the information that the vehicle in question was insured by proposed respondent No. 3-National Insurance Company Limited, Branch Office III, BMC Chowk, Jalandhar, so the same is to be impleaded through Branch Manager as party respondent. Although, the case is at an advance stage, it does not bar the claimants from impleading the Insurance Company as a party respondent when one of the respondents has furnished the particulars of the vehicle regarding registration and insurance company with which the said vehicle is insured. In the interest of justice, the parties can be impleaded at any stage specially in the cases of Motor Accident Claims as Insurance Company is a necessary and proper party. In the interest of justice, the same should be impleaded as a party respondent. Learned counsel for the respondents have also fairly conceded and rightly so that the impugned order may be set aside and the insurance company may be impleaded as respondent in the claim petition before the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal.

3. In view of this, the impugned order dated 21.09.2012 is set aside. Application of the petitioners-claimants for impleading the National Insurance Company as respondent No. 3 is allowed. The Tribunal shall proceed in accordance with law. The revision petition is allowed in the aforementioned terms.