REPORTABLE IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CIVIL APPEAL NO.6924 OF 2005 Pushpa @ Leela & Ors. … Appellants Versus Shakuntala & Ors. … Respondents J U D G M E N T AFTAB ALAM, J.

1. Whether in the fact and circumstances of the case the liability to pay the compensation amount as determined by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal was of the purchaser of the vehicle alone or whether the liability of the recorded owner of the vehicle was coextensive and from the recorded owner it would pass on to the insurer of the vehicle? This is the short question that arises for consideration in this appeal by special leave filed at the instance of the claimants.

2. The appellants, claimants before the Claims Tribunal are the heirs and legal representatives of one Prem Chand who died in a motor accident on May 7, 1994. Prem Chand had hired the truck bearing registration no.HPA- 1435 for carrying some materials and food articles for a wedding in the family. He got the materials to be transported loaded on the truck by a labourer, Nikku Ram whom he had engaged for that purpose and took him along with him on the truck for unloading the consignment at the destination. According to the claimants, the driver Roop Ram was driving the truck rashly and at a very high speed. As a result, the truck met with an accident and at about 6.30-7pm while running on Dhararu Dhar Road near Bangora, Tehsil Arki, District Solan, in the State of Himachal Pradesh, it went off the road and overturned leading to the death of all the three persons, including the driver.

3. The truck had a little history of its own that actually gives rise to the question set out at the beginning of the judgment. It earlier belonged to one Jitender Gupta who was its registered owner. Jitender Gupta sold the truck to Salig Ram on February 2, 1993 and gave its possession to the transferee. On the date of the sale, the truck was covered by an insurance policy taken out by Jitender Gupta from New India Assurance Company Ltd. The insurance policy was issued on February 25, 1992 and it was due to expire on February 24, 1993. Despite the sale of the vehicle by Jitender Gupta to Salig Ram, the change of ownership of the vehicle was not entered in its certificate of registration. After the earlier policy issued by New India Assurance Company Ltd. expired on February 24, 1993, there was a period when the truck was not covered by any insurance policy. Later on, however, Salig Ram took out an insurance policy for the truck from Oriental Insurance Company Ltd. bearing policy no.31/94/00628. The policy was taken in the name of Jitender Gupta, the earlier owner of the truck, and it was valid from December 8, 1993 to December 7, 1994. The accident in which Prem Chand and Nikku Ram lost their lives took place on May 7, 1994, i.e. during the period when the policy taken out from the Oriental Insurance Company Ltd.

was subsisting and valid.

4. The heirs and legal representatives of both the deceased, Prem Chand and Nikku Ram filed separate claim applications before the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Solan, Himachal Pradesh. In both the claim applications Salig Ram, the transferee was impleaded as respondent no.1, Jitender Gupta, the original owner of the truck as respondent no.2 and Oriental Insurance Company Ltd. as respondent no.3. The two claim applications, MAC petition no.62-NS/2 of 1994 filed by the heirs and legal representatives of the deceased Prem Chand (appellants in this appeal) and MAC petition no.63-NS/2 of 1994 filed by the heirs and legal representatives of the deceased Nikku Ram (who pursued the matter only up to the High Court and who have not been able to come to this Court in appeal) were consolidated and heard together. All the three respondents appeared before the Tribunal and filed their separate replies resisting the claims of the two claimants. But none of the respondents led any evidences before the Claims Tribunal.

5. The Claims Tribunal, on the basis of the