K. Janaki and others v. Arun P.P. and The Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd.

Case Details & Bench

Court: High Court of Kerala
Hon'ble Judges: C. T. Ravikumar
B. Sudheendra Kumar
Judgment Date: 2017-10-09
Court Decision / Holding: The appeal is allowed in part. The Tribunal’s multiplier was increased from 11 to 17 in line with the Sarla Verma framework. Notional monthly income was fixed at Rs. 6,000 with 30% future prospects, resulting in Rs. 7,95,600 as loss of dependency (50% deduction for personal expenses). After subtracting Rs. 2,31,000 awarded by the Tribunal, the appellants were granted Rs. 5,64,600 as additional compensation; Rs. 12,000 for funeral expenses; Rs. 30,000 for love and affection; Rs. 10,000 for pain and suffering; Rs. 1,000 for transportation; Rs. 500 for clothing, totaling Rs. 6,18,100 as additional compensation. This sum carries interest at 8% per annum from the date of petition to the date of deposit. The insurer is to deposit the amount with interest before the Tribunal within two months from receipt of a copy of this judgment, and apportionment among appellants is 80:10:10. The MACA appeal stands disposed of in terms stated above.
Final Disposition: Disposed of

Parties to the Case

Appellants / Petitioners

K. JANAKI
ANAKKALLAN JAYASHREE
ANAKKALLAN SUNITHA

Respondents

ARUN P.P.
THE ORIENTAL INSURANCE CO.LTD.

Legal Representation & Advocates

Counsels for Petitioners

• SRI.K.M.SATHYANATHA MENON

Counsels for Respondents

• SRI GEORGE CHERIAN

Case Synopsis & Summary

The appellants — mother and sisters of Subramanian — challenged the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (M.A.C.T.), Manjeri award in M.A.C.T. case No. 941/2009 pertaining to a road traffic accident on 10-06-2007 that left Subramanian dead at Kozhikode Medical College Hospital. The Tribunal had awarded Rs. 2,49,000 as total compensation. The High Court re-evaluated the matter under the standard Sarla Verma framework for calculating compensation, holding that the deceased, aged 26 at the time of death, should be assigned a multiplier of 17 (instead of 11) and that the deceased’s notional monthly income ought to be Rs. 6,000 with a 30% addition for future prospects. In light of the deceased being a bachelor, a 50% deduction for personal expenses was applied. Consequently, the court computed Rs. 7,95,600 as loss of dependency (with annual increments). Having subtracted Rs. 2,31,000 already awarded by the Tribunal, the appellants were awarded an additional Rs. 5,64,600, along with Rs. 12,000 for funeral expenses, Rs. 30,000 for love and affection, Rs. 10,000 for pain and suffering, Rs. 1,000 for transportation, and Rs. 500 for clothing, totaling Rs. 6,18,100 as additional compensation. The insurer was directed to deposit this amount with interest at 8% p.a. within two months, with apportionment among appellants in the ratio 80:10:10. These enhancements were effected while disposing of the MACA appeal, finalizing the Court’s judgment on 9 October 2017.

Legal Doctrines & Maxims

Sarla Verma v. Delhi Transport Corporation — multiplier rule and future prospects (30%)
Notional income and 50% deduction for personal expenses rule within the Sarla Verma framework

Submissions & Arguments

Contentions of Appellants / Petitioners

The appellants contended that the deceased was a mason earning Rs. 300 per day; the tribunal erred in not applying the Sarla Verma framework to fix income, multiplier, and future prospects. They urged that the notional monthly income be Rs. 6,000, with 30% future prospects, and that the head of loss of dependency and other heads be enhanced. They also urged additional awards for funeral expenses, love and affection, pain and suffering, transportation, and clothing, with appropriate interest and deposit timing.

Contentions of Respondents

Not explicitly stated in the document.

Cited Precedents (1)

Case Name	Citation	Treatment	Explanation
Sarla Verma v. Delhi Transport Corporation	2010 (2) KLT 802 (SC)	Positive	Court applied the Sarla Verma framework for multiplier, future prospects, and dependency assessment.

Extracted Judgment Text

Exact text extracted from official judgment records.

IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT: THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE C.T.RAVIKUMAR & THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE B.SUDHEENDRA KUMAR MONDAY, THE 9TH DAY OF OCTOBER 2017/17TH ASWINA, 1939 ## MACA.No. 2050 of 2012 () ------------------------AGAINST THE AWARD IN OPMV 941/2009 of M.A.C.T., MANJERI DATED 16-05-2012 APPELLANT(S)/PETITIONERS 2 TO 4:: -------------------------------- ## 1. K.JANAKI W/O.CHOYI, MADATHUMKANDI HOUSE, AKKAPARAMBA P.O., KUZHIMANNA, ERNAD TALUK, MALAPPURAM DISTRICT. ## 2. ANAKKALLAN JAYASHREE D/O.CHOYI, MADATHUMKANDI HOUSE, AKKAPARAMBA P.O., KUZHIMANNA, ERNAD TALUK, MALAPPURAM DISTRICT. ## 3. ANAKKALLAN SUNITHA D/O.CHOYI, MADATHUMKANDI HOUSE, AKKAPARAMBA P.O., KUZHIMANNA, ERNAD TALUK, MALAPPURAM DISTRICT. ## BY ADV. SRI.K.M.SATHYANATHA MENON RESPONDENT(S)/RESPONDENTS: -------------------------- ## 1. ARUN P.P. S/O.RAMACHANDRAN, PALAMPARAMBATH HOUSE, NEDIYIRUPPU, KONDOTTY P.O., MALAPPURAM DISTRICT, PIN-673638. ## 2. THE ORIENTAL INSURANCE CO.LTD., BRANCH OFFICE, JASEELA COMPLEX, NILAMBUR ROAD, MANJERI P.O., MALAPPURAM DISTRICT, PIN-676121. R2 BY ADV. SRI. GEORGE CHERIAN THIS MOTOR ACCIDENT CLAIMS APPEAL HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 09-10-2017, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: ## **C.T. RAVIKUMAR** ## **& B.SUDHEENDRA KUMAR, JJ. ========================== M.A.C.A. No.2050 OF 2012 ==========================** Dated this the 9[th] day of October, 2017 ## **JUDGMENT** _Sudheendra Kumar, J._ The appellants are the mother and sisters of deceased Subramanian who died in a road traffic accident which occurred on 10.6.2007 at 8 p.m. 2. The deceased Subramanian was travelling as a pillion rider on a motor cycle bearing Reg.No.KL-10/X-3752. Due to the rash and negligent driving of the said motor cycle by the first respondent, it hit against a concrete pillar on the side of the road and as a consequence, the deceased Subramanian sustained serious injuries and he succumbed to the injuries while undergoing treatment in the Medical College Hospital, Kozhikode. **M.A.C.A.2050/2012** 2 3. In connection with the death of the deceased, the Tribunal awarded a total compensation of Rs.2,49,000/-. 4. Heard the learned counsel for the appellants and the learned counsel for the second respondent. 5. The Tribunal had taken the age of the mother of the deceased to fix the multiplier as '11'. The deceased was aged 26 years at the time of the accident. Therefore, the multiplier should be '17' as per the decision of the Apex Court in **Sarla Verma v. Delhi Transport Corporation [2010 (2) KLT 802 (SC)].** The appellants claimed that the deceased was a Mason earning Rs.300/- per day. The mother of the deceased was examined as PW1. She had also given evidence that the deceased used to get Rs.300/- per day, for his work. The Tribunal had taken Rs.3,500/- as the notional monthly income of the deceased. The accident occurred in the year 2007. Therefore, we are inclined to fix the notional monthly income of the deceased as Rs.6,000/-. We are also granting 30% increase towards his future prospects. Thus, the monthly income would come to Rs.7,800/-. **M.A.C.A.2050/2012** 3 6. The deceased was a bachelor. Therefore, 50% of his income had to be deducted for his personal expenses. Thus, the appellants are entitled to get an amount of Rs.7,95,600/- (7800x12x17x½) as compensation towards loss of dependency. Subtracting the amount of Rs.2,31,000/- already awarded by the Tribunal, the appellants are entitled to get an amount of **Rs.5,64,600/-** as additional compensation under this head. The Tribunal had awarded only Rs.3,000/- as compensation towards funeral expenses. We are inclined to grant an additional amount of **Rs.12,000/-** under this count. Towards loss of love and affection, the Tribunal awarded an amount of Rs.10,000/-. The appellants are the mother and sisters of the deceased. Therefore, we are granting an additional compensation of **Rs.30,000/-** under this count. The Tribunal did not award any amount as compensation towards pain and suffering. The deceased died on the date of the accident while undergoing treatment in the hospital. Therefore, we are inclined to grant an amount of **Rs.10,000/-** as compensation towards pain and suffering. Towards transportation, we are granting **M.A.C.A.2050/2012** 4 an amount of **Rs.1,000/-** as compensation. Towards damage to clothing, we are granting an amount of **Rs.500/-** as compensation. Thus, the appellants are entitled to a total amount of **Rs.6,18,100/-** as additional compensation. The above amount carries interest at the rate of 8% per annum from the date of the petition till the date of deposit. The second respondent, being the insurer of the vehicle involved in the accident, is directed to deposit the said amount with interest before the Tribunal within a period of two months from the date of receipt of a copy of this judgment. The appellants Nos.1 to 3 are entitled to apportionment of the amount in the ratio 80:10:10. The appeal stands disposed of as above. **Sd/-** **C.T. RAVIKUMAR (JUDGE)** ## ## **B.SUDHEENDRA KUMAR (JUDGE)** **spc/** # **M.A.C.A.2050/2012** 5 **M.A.C.A.2050/2012** 6 **C.T. RAVIKUMAR, J.** **JUDGMENT September, 2010** # **M.A.C.A.2050/2012** 7