A tribunal awarded more than Rs. 80 lakhs in compensation to the close family of a 26-year-old man who died in the tragic incident.
The deceased Mohd. Rashid - the father of a two a two-year-old toddler, was travelling in his Omni with his friend. The vehicle had stopped due to a mechanical issue and he and others were pushing it to make it start, when a rashly driven tempo coming from Pune side had hit them near village Devad in Khandeshwar.
The tempo owner, from whom the family had demanded compensation, had blamed the accident on Rashid’s negligence. The insurance company of the tempo, too, from whom compensation was claimed, had contended that the men were pushing the car which had stopped in the middle of the road without any indication or barricades for vehicles passing on the road. They too blamed the mishap on their own negligence.
The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal’s (MACT) member SB Munde said in the judgement that probe papers of the accident spot show that Rahid’s car was on the extreme left side of the road when the accident happened. It further said, referring to police papers and the testimony of Rashid’s father, that the car was hit by the tempo that had come from its rear.
The tribunal rejected the insurance company's argument that there was no indication given by the deceased and stated that it is not the case that the tempo driver could not see Rashid's car or its occupants due to a lack of signal.
Further, it said that it is not the case that it was dark at the time around 5 am to 5.30 am when the incident took place. Even if it is assumed that it was completely dark, the tribunal said that the headlights of the tempo would have been on.
