1 2025:CGHC:44453 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR MAC No. 101 of 2022 Divisional Manager, The New India Insurance Company Limited, Madina Manjil Jail Road, Raipur, Tahsil And District Raipur Chhattisgarh.(Insurer Of Vehicle Tanker No. G.J.- 20-U/5426) ... Appellant versus 1 - Sonu Joshi, S/o. Chandraprakash Joshi, Aged About 28 Years, R/o. Village Lakhanpur Police Station Patewa, Tahsil And District Mahasamund, Chhattisgarh. 2 - Kumari Soniya Joshi, D/o. Chandraprakash Joshi, Aged About 18 Years, R/o. Village Lakhanpur, Police Station Patewa, Tahsil And District Mahasamund, Chhattisgarh. 3 - Chandraprakash Joshi, S/o. Makhan Joshi, Aged About 42 Years, R/o. Village Lakhanpur, Police Station Patewa, Tahsil And District Mahasamund, Chhattisgarh. 4 - Makhan Joshi, S/o. Balgovind, Aged About 80 Years, R/o. Village Lakhanpur, Police Station Patewa, Tahsil And District Mahasamund, Chhattisgarh. ASHOK SAHU Digitally signed by ASHOK SAHU Date: 2025.09.02 17:19:38 +0530 2 5 - Gautam Bai, W/o. Makhan Joshi, Aged About 62 Years, R/o. Village Lakhanpur, Police Station Patewa, Tahsil And District Mahasamund, Chhattisgarh. 6 – Surendraram, S/o. Mudrikaram, Aged About 45 Years, R/o. Village Kawal, Police Station Chhatarpur, District Palamu (Jharkhand), Presently R/o. M/s. B.S.C.P.L. Infrastructure Camp Sindhupali, Police Station & Tahsil Pithora, District Mahasamund, Chhattisgarh. (Driver Of Vehicle Tanker No. G.J.- 20-U/5426) 7 – M/s. B.S.C.P.L. Infrastructure Camp Sindhupali, Police Station And Tahsil Pithora, District Mahasamund, Chhattisgarh, Through Cite Incharge (Registered Owner Of Vehicle Tanker No. G.J.- 20-U/5426) ... Respondents For Appellant : Mr. Pankaj Agrawal & Mrs. Swati Agrawal, Advocates For Respondents : None present. (Single Bench) Hon'ble Shri Justice Sanjay K. Agrawal Judgment on Board 01.09.2025 1. The appellant/insurance company has preferred this appeal under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 calling in question the legality, validity and correctness of the impugned award dated 26.08.2021 passed by the learned First Additional Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, 3 Mahasamund in Claim Case No.H-102/2018, by which the claim application of the claimants has been allowed and awarded an amount of compensation of Rs.5,48,750/- to the claimants and further the liability has been fastened upon the insurance company to pay the compensation first and thereafter recover from the driver & owner of the offending vehicle. 2. Mr. Pankaj Agrawal & Mrs. Swati Agrawal, learned counsels for appellant/insurance company, would submit that the deceased was not a third party sitting in the offending motor vehicle, which was registered as machine; therefore, the insurance company has wrongly been fastened the liability to the extent of Rs. 1,00,000/- and firstly pay the balance amount and thereafter, recover the same from the driver & owner of the offending vehicle and also the penal interest @ 7% per annum awarded from the date of award is liable to be set aside. 3. None present for the respondents to argue the matter. 4. A careful perusal of the written statement filed by the insurance company would show that the insurance company has only taken a specific plea that the liability of the insurance company is confined to Rs. 1,00,000/- towards the third party, but no such plea has been taken 4 that the deceased was not a third party. In that view of the matter, the learned Claims Tribunal has rightly held that the insurance company is liable to pay the amount of compensation to the extent of Rs.1,00,000/- and further held that the remaining compensation amount will be paid by the insurance company firstly to the claimants and thereafter, recover the same from the driver & owner of the offending vehicle as per the principles laid down by the Supreme Court in the matter of National Insurance Co. Ltd vs Swaran Singh & Ors1. 5. The next submission that the interest @7% per annum imposed upon the appellant/insurance company, if the amount of award is not paid within one month is liable to be set aside and is hereby set-aside. It is made clear that the appellant is liable to pay the interest on the awarded amount from the date of filing of claim application till its relation @ 6% per annum, as already directed. 6. In the result, the appeal is partly allowed and the impugned award is modified to the extent indicated herein-above. Sd/- (Sanjay K. Agrawal) Ashok Judge 1 (2004) 3 SCC 297