Accident Compensation – Court cannot sit over disability determined by Medical Board
On 23.3.2014, Maruti Omni coming from opposite direction on the wrong side of the road, gave dash to the motor cycle of the appellant – claimant. The appellant suffered numerous injuries including on the head and his right leg.
The Medical Board has certified the permanent disability of the appellant-claimant at 100%. It was noted that now the patient has no speech and his intellectual functions are completely impaired. He cannot stand and walk. He catheterized till now.
The tribunal, however, discarded the medical board report as not reliable and determined the disability at 50% and awarded total insurance compensation of Rs.16,29,465/-.
The High Court enhanced the compensation to Rs.19,39,418/-.
The Supreme Court HELD that when the Tribunal had reason to doubt the medical certificate, the option available is to have the disability re-assessed but it could not have gone into the details of the determination of disability. Since that course of action has not been adopted the opinion of the Medical Board being the opinion of the experts is binding. That apart, the comatose state of the appellant is not in dispute.
Moreover, the Supreme court awarded attendant charges @ Rs.5,000 and enhanced the total compensation to Rs.48,69,180/- as per the details given in para 12 of the judgment with 7% per annum interest from the date of the claim petition.
Judgment dated 10.2.2025 of the Supreme Court of India in Civil Appeal No….of2025 (Special Civil Appeal [Civil] No3066 of 2024) of Prakash Chand Sharma Vs. Rambabu Saini and another
