Stating that a 37-year-old who died in a road accident in 2014 after his motorcycle skid and hit a bus, would not have died if he had worn a helmet, a Motor Accident Claims Tribunal rejected the compensation of Rs. 75 lakhs claimed by his wife and minor son.
It observed that there is no touch from front or any side of the bus to the deceased and said that it seems the bus was safely driven. It also relied on the police record which showed that the motorcycle of the deceased slipped due to his own fault and thereafter he skidded upto the gas container of the bus and his head hit it. Tribunal member Vilas P. Kadam said that if that is so, he would not have died if he had worn the helmet. “The record shows that there was no use of a helmet at the time of the accident by the deceased as his hairs are attached to the guard of the gas container,” it said. Thus, it held that negligence was on part of the deceased.
The family members had claimed that the BEST bus had hit his bike from the rear, due to which the mishap took place. The claimants had examined someone they claimed to be an eyewitness in support of their claim. The tribunal found his evidence doubtful.
The BEST had refuted the allegations and said that the negligence was fully of the deceased. The bus driver who deposed before the tribunal had told it that the bus had started from a stop and he had heard a collision and then seen in the mirror that a two-wheeler had collided with the bus.
Advocate for the BEST had argued that the bike had skid without the bus touching it. The tribunal relied on the spot panchnama and said it clearly indicates that the right footrest and engine guard of the deceased’s motorcycle had rubbed on the road and said it appears that it had skidded.
