IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD R/FIRST APPEAL NO. 1878 of 2022 FOR APPROVAL AND SIGNATURE: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE HASMUKH D. SUTHAR ========================================================== Approved for Reporting Yes No ========================================================== THE UNITED INDIA INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED Versus RAJESHBHAI ALIAS RAJUBHAI RAMANBHAI PATEL & ORS. ========================================================== Appearance: MR RATHIN P RAVAL(5013) for the Appellant(s) No. 1 MR PARTH R KIKANI(10767) for the Defendant(s) No. 1,2,3 RULE SERVED for the Defendant(s) No. 4 ========================================================== CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE HASMUKH D. SUTHAR Date : 22/01/2026 ORAL JUDGMENT 1 This appeal has been preferred by the appellant-Insurance Company against the judgment and award dated 29.01.2022 and decree dated 31.01.2022 passed by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (Auxi.) Mrzapur at Ahmedabad, in Motor Accident Claim Petition No.1035 of 2013. 2. Heard learned advocates for the respective parties. Though served, none appears for respondent No.4. 3. The brief facts of the case are that the deceased was riding a motorcycle when, upon reaching near the place of the accident, the driver of the trailer drove the vehicle in a rash and negligent manner and collided with the motorcycle, resulting in the p. 2 accident. As a consequence, the deceased sustained fatal injuries and succumbed thereto. The claimants thereafter preferred a claim petition under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act before the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal. 4. Learned advocate for the appellant submits that the learned Tribunal has awarded exorbitant compensation without considering the settled provisions of law. The appeal has been filed on the ground that, in view of the law laid down by the Hon’ble Apex Court in National Insurance Company vs Pranay Shetty and Ors., reported in (2017) 16 SCC 680, an amount of Rs.2,50,000/- awarded towards loss of love and affection, without assigning any reasons, is required to be slashed down. There are only two eligible legal heirs, and they are entitled only to the maximum permissible amount towards loss of consortium; no other heads are permissible. The learned Tribunal has also awarded a 20% rise on the base compensation towards loss of estate and funeral expenses, which is exorbitant and has been separately awarded, making the same unwarranted. Therefore, the said amounts are also required to be slashed down. Hence, it is prayed that the appeal be allowed. 5. Learned advocate for the respondents has opposed the appeal on the ground that the learned Tribunal has not committed any error and, therefore, no interference is warranted. He has relied upon the decision reported in (2013) 7 SCC 476, Vimal Kanwar v. Kishore Dan, and has argued that the learned Tribunal has properly awarded compensation under the head of loss of love and affection. He has, therefore, prayed for p. 3 dismissal of the appeal. 6. Having heard the learned advocates for the respective parties, and considering that the appeal is filed on a narrow compass, upon perusal of and after considering the documents on record, it appears that the learned Tribunal has awarded compensation under different heads in paragraph 17 of the impugned award as under: Sr. No. Particulars Amount in [Rs.] 1. Loss of Dependency. 7,56,000/- 2. Loss of Estate, loss of consortium and funeral expenses. 84,000/- 3. Loss of love and affection. 2,50,000/- Total 10,90,000/- 7. Upon perusal of the record, it emerges that though the learned Tribunal has placed reliance on the decision of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Pranay Shetty (supra) and has referred to paragraph 15 thereof, wherein the principles governing award of compensation are elaborately laid down, the said principles have been ignored while computing the compensation. The calculation reflected in paragraph 17 of the impugned award is, therefore, erroneous and calls for interference. 8. Once the Hon’ble Supreme Court has conclusively settled the law relating to award of compensation, no deviation or contrary view is permissible. Further, after the pronouncement of Pranay Shetty (supra), particularly paragraph 59 thereof, the p. 4 amounts payable under the conventional heads have been fixed. 9. In the present case, the claimants are entitled to compensation under the head of loss of consortium at Rs.48,200/- per claimant, i.e. Rs.96,400/- for two claimants, and under the heads of loss of estate and funeral expenses at Rs.18,150/- each, aggregating to Rs.36,300/-. Thus, the total compensation payable under the conventional heads comes to Rs.1,32,700/-. However, without assigning any reasons, the learned Tribunal has awarded an amount of Rs.2,50,000/- towards loss of love and affection, which is contrary to the settled legal position and cannot be sustained. The said amount is required to be excluded, and the compensation deserves to be modified and recalculated as under: Sr. No. Particulars Amount [Rs.] 1 Loss of dependency. 7,56,000/- 2 Loss of consortium. 48,200x2=96,400/- 3 Loss of estate and funeral expenses. 18150x2=36,300/- Total Rs.8,88,700/- 10. For the reasons recorded above, the appeal is partly allowed. The impugned judgment and award is hereby modified, and the compensation amount of Rs. 10,90,000/- awarded by the Tribunal is reduced to Rs. 8,88,700/-. Now the claimant is entitled to receive Rs. 8,88,700/- towards compensation with interest at the rate of 9% per annum from the date of filing of the claim petition till realization. If the amount has already been deposited by the Insurance Company, the p. 5 Insurance Company shall be entitled to recover the difference amount, i.e., Rs. 2,01,300/- The Insurance Company shall deposit the said amount of compensation along with interest, as awarded by the Tribunal, before the Tribunal within a period of four weeks from the date of receipt of this order. Record and Proceedings and amount, if any lying before this Court is ordered to be transmitted to the concerned Tribunal forthwith along with accrued interest, if any. The entire awarded amount be disbursed and released in favour of the claimants after due verification by transferring the said amount to the account of the claimants either by RTGS or NEFT mode. Award to be drawn accordingly. (HASMUKH D. SUTHAR,J) ALI