Tribunal blames rash driving for death, cuts damages by 50%

CHENNAI: Holding that the rash driving by the victim, a biker, might have contributed to his fatal accident involving an MTC bus, a city motor accident claims tribunal deducted 50 per cent from the compensation amount to be paid to his family by the transport corporation.

The family now stands to lose Rs 16 lakh after the 50 per cent cut for contributory negligence.

According to the petition by the parents of S Karthik of Arumbakkam, their son was travelling to work at a clothing store in Besant Nagar when a rashly driven MTC bus knocked his two-wheeler down and ran over him on RK Mutt Road in Mylapore. The accident happened on October 23, 2015.

In response, the transport corporation contended that the bus (route no.29 C) was operating at moderate speed and it was the motorist who had attempted to overtake the bus from the left, during which his two-wheeler brushed against the body of the bus and suffered a fall.

“If the tribunal comes to the conclusion that the MTC driver was also responsible for the accident and liable for contributory negligence, the greater percentage of liability ought to be fixed on the deceased,” the counsel for MTC submitted.

The tribunal, after perusing the submissions from both sides and the FIR and other documents, held that the transport corporation is liable to pay compensation to the deceased’s family.

However, the tribunal considered the submission by the deceased’s younger brother, who witnessed the accident while trailing his brother on another motorcycle.

His statement aligned with the transport corporation’s stance. Considering the road width and other factors, the tribunal held that the motorist too contributed to the accident and held that 50 per cent contributory negligence could be deducted for loss of dependency, which was calculated as Rs 32 lakh.

Computing other factors apart from the loss of dependency, the tribunal arrived at an amount of Rs 17.4 lakh as total compensation to be paid by MTC to Karthik’s parents.