UNITED INDIA INSURANCE CO LTD vs MS NEELAM AND ORS

Judgment text excerpt

$~35 * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI % Date of Decision: 24.07.2025 + MAC.APP. 328/2024, CM APPL. 37791/2024, CM APPL. 70761/2024 UNITED INDIA INSURANCE CO LTD .....Appellant Through: Mr. Subodh Kumar Jha, Advocate versus MS NEELAM AND ORS .....Respondents Through: Mr. Anshuman Bal, Advocate for R-1 &2 CORAM: HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE TARA VITASTA GANJU TARA VITASTA GANJU, J.: (Oral) MAC.APP. 328/2024: 1. The Registry is directed to register the cross objections as a separate Appeal. 2. The present Appeal has been filed on behalf of the Appellant under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988 impugning the judgment dated 10.04.2024 [hereinafter referred to as “Impugned Award”] passed by the learned Presiding Officer, MACT, East, Karkardooma Courts, Delhi. By the Impugned Order, compensation in the sum of Rs. 19,71,000/- has been awarded to the Respondent Nos. 1 and 2/Claimants along with interest at the rate of 7.5% per annum. 3. Learned Counsel appearing on behalf of the Appellant submits that he has only one ground of challenge in the present Appeal. He submits that the Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed MAC.APP. 328/2024 Page 1 of 10 By:GEETA JOSHI Signing Date:14.08.2025 10:23:01 deceased was unmarried and survived by her mother and one minor younger brother and thus, the deduction of personal and living expenses should have been one half, however, the learned Tribunal has wrongly taken the deduction as one-third. 3.1 Learned Counsel appearing on behalf of the Appellant further submits that the learned Tribunal although discussed the judgment of the Supreme Court in Reshma Kumari & Ors. v. Madan Mohan & Anr.,1 the deduction was wrongly applied the same since the family of the deceased was not a large family. 4. Briefly, the facts in the present Appeal are