MSRTC Ordered to Compensate Rs 13.95 Lakh in Fatal Bus Accident Case

Thane, Sep 1 (PTI) The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal in Thane has ordered the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) to pay Rs 13.95 lakh as compensation to the family of a pedestrian killed in a 2021 accident involving an MSRTC bus.

Tribunal member R V Mohite dismissed the MSRTC's claim that the 53-year-old laborer, Shivaji Ganapati Irule, was negligent. Instead, the tribunal held the bus driver completely responsible for the incident.

The order, issued on August 26, became available to the public on Monday. The compensation claimants include Irule's wife, four children, and his mother.

According to the claimants, on October 9, 2021, Shivaji Ganapati Irule was walking cautiously along the side of Ghodbunder Road near Gaimukh Naka in Thane when an MSRTC bus approached at high speed with its left dicky door open. The door struck Irule, causing severe injuries that led to his death. Despite being rushed to a private medical facility and then to the Civil Hospital in Thane, he was declared dead upon arrival.

The Kasarwadavali police have filed a case against the bus driver under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Motor Vehicles Act.

The tribunal rejected MSRTC's argument that the deceased was responsible for the accident. The tribunal stated, "The driver of the offending bus appeared to be negligent for keeping the dicky door open. There is no record of any contributory action by the deceased in the accident." The tribunal further emphasized that it was the responsibility of both the driver and the conductor to ensure the dicky door was securely locked.

The claimants had argued that Irule earned Rs 20,000 per month as a laborer, but the tribunal found insufficient evidence to support this claim and set his notional income at Rs 13,000 per month. The tribunal concluded, "The claimants are entitled to a compensation of Rs 13,95,400 covering both pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages from the opponent."

MSRTC has been directed to deposit the compensation amount within one month, with an additional 9 percent interest from the filing date of the petition. The deceased's wife and mother are set to receive Rs 4.97 lakh each, while the four children will get Rs 1 lakh each. Part of the compensation for the wife and mother will be placed in fixed deposits for a period of three years, as per the tribunal's order.