Compensation claims in road accidents need not be proven like criminal cases: Karnataka HC
Bengaluru, Aug 29: In cases related to compensation claims in road accidents, the case is not expected to be proved like a criminal trial, the High Court of Karnataka has said.
"It is well known that in a case relating to motor accident claims, the claimants are not required to prove the case as it is required to be done in a criminal trial. The court must keep this distinction in mind," the court said recently while dismissing an appeal filed by an insurance company challenging the compensation awarded to an accident victim's family.
The Division Bench of Justices K Somashekar and Rajesh Rai K was hearing two appeals -- one filed by Bajaj Allianz Insurance and another filed by Chikka Thayamma and Rame Gowda, the parents of one Divakar M R who died in an accident on August 13, 2019.
Divakar met with an accident near Durgaparameshwari Temple in Nagarabhavi while riding a motorcycle.
ALSO READ: Depressed over alleged harassment by officials, KSRTC Madikeri staffer attempts suicide
A car is said to have caused the accident resulting in his death in a nearby private hospital where he was taken for treatment. Divakar was working in a bar and restaurant and earning Rs 18,000 per month.
The Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal (MACT) awarded compensation of Rs 15,43,600 to the parents of Divakar. They approached the HC seeking enhancement of compensation. The insurer approached the HC stating that the complaint about the accident did not mention the involvement of the car and it was the negligence of Divakar that had resulted in his death.
The HC, in its judgement, said strict proof of the accident need not be proved by the claimants for compensation.
"A holistic view of the evidence has to be taken into consideration by the tribunal and strict proof of an accident caused by a particular vehicle in a particular manner need not be established by the claimants. The claimants have to establish their case on the touchstone of preponderance of probabilities," the HC said.
Dismissing the appeal filed by the insurer, the HC said: "The standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt cannot be applied while considering the petition seeking compensation on account of death or injury in a road traffic accident. Therefore, the domain it is vested with the tribunal in appreciating evidence in terms of social justice and it should be extended and considered to a greater extent but not in conjectures and surmises but more credentiality must be given to that aspect.
The HC also found the compensation awarded by the MACT to be correct and dismissed the appeal of the victim's parents for enhancement.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Jharkhand horror: Man kills live-in partner, chops body into 40 pieces
Ranchi (PTI): A 25-year-old man, who works as a butcher, allegedly strangled to death his live-in partner and chopped her body into 40 to 50 pieces in a forested area in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, police said on Wednesday.
The accused, identified as Naresh Bhengra, was arrested.
The matter came to light after around a fortnight after the killing when a stray dog was found with human body parts near Jordag village in Jariagarh police station on November 24.
Bhengra was in a live-in relationship with the deceased, a 24-year-old woman also from Khunti district, in Tamil Nadu for the past couple of years. Sometime back, he returned to Jharkhand, got married to another woman without telling his partner anything and went back to the southern state without his wife to join her.
"The brutal incident occurred on November 8 when they reached Khunti as the accused who had married another woman did not wish to take her home. Instead, he took her to a forest near his house at Jordag village in Jariagarh police station and chopped the body into pieces. The man has been arrested," Khunti Superintendent of Police Aman Kumar told PTI.
Inspector Ashok Singh who investigated the case said the man worked in a butcher shop in Tamil Nadu and was expert in slicing chicken.
“He admitted chopping the body parts of the woman into 40 to 50 pieces before leaving those in the forest for wild animals to feast on. The police recovered several parts on November 24 after a dog in the area was seen with a hand," Singh told PTI.
Singh said that the woman, who was unaware of his marriage, pressured him to return to Khunti. After reaching Ranchi, they boarded a train on November 24 and headed to the man's village.
"Under a plan, the man took her to Khunti in an autorickshaw near his home and asked her to wait. He returned with sharp weapons and strangulated her with her dupatta after raping her. He then cut the body into 40 to 50 pieces and left for his home to live with his wife," Singh said.
The woman, however, had informed her mother that she had boarded a train and would be living with her partner, the police officer said.
Following the recovery of body parts, a bag was also found in the forest with the murdered woman's belongings including her Aadhaar card. The mother of the woman was called at the spot and she identified her daughter's belongings.
"The mother suspected the man behind the crime who after being nabbed by the police admitted to chopping the woman into pieces," the official added.
The incident has sent shockwaves among people in the region, with the Shraddha Walker murder case of 2022 still fresh in their memory.
Walker was killed by her live-in partner who chopped her body into pieces before dumping them in the jungle in South Delhi’s Mehrauli.
