[2026:RJ-JD:8061]

HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN AT JODHPUR S.B. Civil Misc. Appeal No. 3069/2025

1. Aarti Devi W/o Late Shri Manoj Kumar, Aged About 41 Years, Resident Of Ward No. 10, Nokha, District Bikaner.

2. Suman D/o Late Shri Manoj Kumar, Aged About 21 Years, Resident Of Ward No. 10, Nokha, District Bikaner.

3. Kanhaiyalal S/o Late Shri Manoj Kumar, Aged About 19 Years, Resident Of Ward No. 10, Nokha, District Bikaner.

4. Shani D/o Late Shri Manoj Kumar, Aged About 17 Years, Minor Therefore Represented By Natural Guardian Appellant No. 1, Resident Of Ward No. 10, Nokha, District Bikaner.

5. Manish S/o Late Shri Manoj Kumar, Aged About 11 Years, Minor Therefore Represented By Natural Guardian Appellant No. 1, Resident Of Ward No. 10, Nokha, District Bikaner.

----Appellants Versus

1. Ramdev S/o Chhaganlal Prajapat, Resident Of Kumharo Ka Chowk, Nokha, District Bikaner. (Owner)

2. Prakashchand S/o Shri Chandaram, Resident Of Malani Bas, Nokha, District Bikaner. (Driver)

3. Divisional Manager, The Oriental Insurance Company Limited, Kachari Parisar, Bikaner.

----Respondents For Appellant(s) : Mr. Aman Bishnoi Bola.

For Respondent(s) : Mr. Aditya Singhi.

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE MUKESH RAJPUROHIT

Order

09/02/2026

1. The present civil misc. appeal has been filed by the appellants-claimants seeking enhancement of the compensation amount awarded vide judgment/award dated 19.07.2025 passed by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Bikaner (“learned Tribunal” hereinafter,), in MACT Case No. 187/2019, whereby claim petition filed by the appellant-claimant was allowed and they were held entitled for compensation to the tune of Rs.34,94,156/- and liability to pay was fastened upon the respondents jointly and severally with interest @7% per annum from the date of filing the claim petition i.e., 29.04.2019.

2. Brief facts as pleaded in the claim petition are that on 04.01.2019 at about 07:30 PM, the deceased Manoj Kumar was riding his motorcycle bearing registration no. RJ-50-SB-1576 from Kanpura Basti towards Jambheshwar Chowk, Nokha. During this time, a car bearing registration no. RJ-03-CA-1251, driven by its driver, Prakashchandra, rashly and negligently, hit the motorcycle from the front side. As a result of the collision, deceased Manoj Kumar sustained injuries on his body and succumbed to the said injuries. The said vehicle was insured with the respondent Insurance Company.

3. The claim petition was contested by the respondent/non- claimants, and after holding a trial, the learned Tribunal vide the judgement/award dated 19.07.2025, awarded compensation to the appellants-claimants amounting to Rs.34,94,156/- with interest.

The breakup of the compensation awarded by the Tribunal is as follows:

4. The present appeal is confined to a challenge against the quantum of compensation awarded by the Tribunal under the head of loss of income. The amounts awarded under the other conventional heads are not in dispute.

5. Learned counsel for the appellant claimant submitted that the learned Tribunal erroneously took the net take-home salary of Rs.19,633/- as the monthly income of the deceased, instead of the gross salary of Rs.25,202/-, by wrongly excluding the contributions made towards Gratuity (Rs.935/-), New NPS (Rs.4,077/-), and LIC Premium (Rs.557/-) from the gross salary.

6. Learned counsel for the appellant-claimant contended that the Tribunal committed manifest error in computing the monthly income of the deceased by taking the net salary of Rs.19,633/- instead of the gross salary of Rs.25,202/- as reflected in the pay- slip. He submitted that the deductions towards Gratuity, New NPS, and LIC Premium are in the nature of savings and deferred wages, which are repayable to the employee or his legal heirs, and therefore ought not to have been excluded from the income of the deceased. He placed reliance on