The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) in Maharashtra`s Thane has awarded a compensation of Rs 53.20 lakh to the family of a 29-year-old man who was killed in a road accident in 2022.
According the news agency PTI, the deceased, a senior operations representative at Convergys India Services Pvt Ltd, died on the spot after a speeding tempo rammed into his motorcycle on Ghodbunder Road in March 2022.
The victim was returning home to Thane when the incident occurred. According to the tribunal, the tempo driver fled the scene without offering any assistance.
The victim’s parents and brother had filed a compensation petition against the vehicle owner and the insurance company.
Tribunal member R.V. Mohite, in an order dated September 26 (made public on Thursday), ruled that the accident was solely caused due to the rash and negligent driving of the tempo driver. The tribunal dismissed the insurance company’s argument that the victim was also at fault or was driving without a valid licence. It held that both the deceased and the tempo driver possessed valid driving licences, and the tempo had a valid goods permit, confirming there was no breach of insurance terms.
Rejecting the theory of contributory negligence, the judge noted that the deceased was riding on the left side of the road and there was no evidence indicating fault on his part.
Of the total Rs 53.20 lakh compensation, Rs 34.55 lakh was awarded for loss of future income and Rs 17.27 lakh towards future prospects. The tribunal ordered the vehicle owner and the insurer to pay the amount jointly and severally, along with 9 per cent annual interest from the date of filing the petition.
Kurla BEST bus accident: Court discharges executives of two private firms
A Mumbai court has discharged two senior executives of private firms engaged in operating electric buses, in connection with the Kurla BEST bus accident that claimed nine lives in December last year, reported the PTI.
The duo had been booked, along with bus driver Sanjay More, for negligence in driver training, supervision, and deployment.
Additional sessions judge Avinash Kulkarni on Monday discharged Ramesh Katigandla, managing director of Evey Trans (MUM) Private Limited, and Ram Suryavanshi, CEO of Morya Trans India Pvt Ltd, in the case, according to the PTI.
The bus, operated by the civic-run Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking, hit several vehicles and pedestrians after the driver lost control of the wheels on S.G. Barve Marg in Kurla West around 9.30 pm on December 9, 2024.
Nine people were killed and 42 others sustained injuries in the accident.
The electric bus, hired by the civic-run BEST undertaking on a wet-lease basis, ploughed into a crowd and fatally knocked down seven persons and injured 42 others on a crowded road in the Kurla area.
Several vehicles were also damaged in the incident.
(With PTI inputs)
