Smt. Rekha & Ors. Vs Dinesh Porwal & Ors. (Supreme Court of India)
The Supreme Court allowed a civil appeal arising from a claim under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 relating to compensation for the death of a 28-year-old wholesale grocery trader in a motor accident. The claimants, being the legal representatives of the deceased, sought compensation of Rs.90,25,000, stating that the deceased earned Rs.5,00,000 annually and was the sole breadwinner of the family.
The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT), Mandsaur, assessed the deceased’s monthly income at Rs.7,000 based on the net profit reflected in the Income Tax Return (ITR) for the previous year and awarded compensation of Rs.15,36,560 with interest at 7% per annum from the date of filing of the claim petition. On appeal, the High Court enhanced the compensation to Rs.38,40,850 by assessing the monthly income at Rs.16,750 based on the average income disclosed in the ITRs for Assessment Years 2012-13 and 2013-14. The High Court excluded two ITRs filed after the death of the deceased while determining his income.
Before the Supreme Court, the claimants contended that the High Court had wrongly excluded the two most recent ITRs from consideration. Referring to the principles laid down in Rashmirekha Tripathy, the Court examined the issue of assessing income where ITRs had been filed after the death of the deceased.
