1 2025:CGHC:54670 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR MAC No. 71 of 2022 Iffco-Tokio General Insurance Company Ltd. 1st Floor Near Galaxy Heights, Icici Bank Sanjay Apartment, Vyapar Vihar, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur Chhattisgarh. (Insurer Of Motorcycle No. Cg10ac2053) ... Appellant versus 1 - Mahendra Singh Rajwade ( Died) Through Its Legal Hair 1(A) Smt. Nandni Singh Rajwade W/o Late Mahendra Singh Rajwade Aged About 48 Years R/o Ratanpur (Ward No. 1 Korba Bhanwar), P.S. And Tahsil And Ratanpur, District Bilaspur Chhattisgarh. (Driver Of Motorcycle No. Cg10ac2053) 2 - Krishna Kumar Uddeshya S/o Lakhan Lal Udeshya Aged About 57 Years R/o Ward No. 12, Ghanshyam Ward, Bitkuli Belgahna, P.S. Kota, District Bilaspur Chhattisgarh. HARNEET KAUR Digitally signed by HARNEET KAUR Date: 2025.11.11 11:14:47 +0530 2 3 - Smt. Vijay Laxmi Uddeshya W/o Krishhna Kumar Uddeshya Aged About 51 Years R/o Ward No. 12, Ghanshyam Ward, Bitkuli Belgahna, P.S. Kota, District Bilaspur Chhattisgarh. ... Respondent(s) For Appellant : Ms. Shrejal Gupta on behalf of Mr. Vaibhav Shukla, Advocates For Respondents No. 2 & 3 : Mr. Deepak Kumar Singh, Advocate SB- Hon'ble Shri Justice Sanjay K. Agrawal Judgment On Board 10.11.2025 1. This appeal under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (for short “Act of 1988”) has been preferred by the appellant (Insurance Company) challenging the impugned award dated 29/07/2021 passed by learned Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Janjgir-Champa in Claim Case No. 76/2019, whereby learned Claims Tribunal has awarded a total sum of Rs. 9,26,800/- as compensation to respondents No. 2 and 3/claimants for the death of Surendra Kumar and the liability of payment of compensation has been fastened upon the appellant (Insurance Company). 3 2. Learned counsel for the appellant (Insurance Company) would submit that the Driver of the offending motorcycle i.e. respondent No. 1 herein did not valid and effective driving license on the date of the accident as he was charge-sheeted for offence punishable under Section 3/181 of the Act of 1988 before the judicial Criminal Court vide Annexure A/1, therefore, the appellant (Insurance Company) ought to have been exonerated from the liability of payment of compensation and at the best, the principle of pay and recover could have been applied. 3. Learned counsel for respondents No. 2 and 3/claimants would support the impugned award and submit that the impugned award does not warrant any interference by this Court. 4. I have heard learned counsel for the parties, considered their rival submissions made herein-above and went through the records with utmost circumspection. 5. Admittedly, driver of the offending motorcycle namely Mahendra Kumar Rajwade i.e. respondent No. 1 herein was charge-sheeted for offence punishable under Section 3/181 of the Act of 1988 for not having valid and effective driving license on the date of the accident, however, he died during the pendency of the trial, therefore, it appears 4 that no final conclusion could be drawn as to whether he was having valid and effective driving license on the date of the accident or not. Even otherwise, merely the fact of issuance of charge-sheet against the driver in absence of examination of any RTO Officer by the appellant (Insurance Company) to prove whether the driver did or did not possess valid and effective driving license on the date of the accident, cannot be made a basis for presumption of the said fact. It was upon the appellant (Insurance Company) to examine the concerned RTO Officer before the Court to prove that the driver did not have valid and effective driving license on the date of the accident. As such, I do not find any merit in this appeal. 6. Accordingly, the instant appeal, being devoid of merits, is liable to be and is hereby dismissed leaving the parties to bear their own cost(s). Sd/- (Sanjay K. Agrawal) Judge Harneet