CASE: ORIENTAL INSURANCE CO. LIMITED vs HARISHIT SRIVASTAVA @ UMANG
Summary
The Supreme Court is set to review a legal issue regarding the eligibility of a proprietor to receive compensation under their own insurance policy. The Allahabad High Court affirmed a Tribunal’s award of compensation to minor children, who were at fault in a collision. The insurance company contested the High Court’s ruling, arguing that the High Court did not address the issue. The Calcutta High Court, in a case involving New India Assurance Company Ltd v. Srikanta Tewari, ruled that the insurer provides liability coverage, leaving the legal question unresolved.
About the case
Whether the proprietor, if at fault, is eligible to receive compensation under the terms of his own insurance policy. This legal issue, which was raised in a special leave petition submitted against the Allahabad High Court judgment, would be reviewed by the Supreme Court. In this instance, the driver of the vehicle whose spouse perished in the collision was purportedly at fault; the minor children are the plaintiffs’ appellants, who have named the father as a respondent.
The High Court affirmed the judgment of the Tribunal that awarded the compensation. In contesting the ruling of the High Court, the insurance company has petitioned the High Court with the aforementioned concern, despite the fact that the High Court does not appear to address such a matter in its decision. The bench, in issuing the notice, ordered that two-thirds of the amount be returned to the two minor children at the time, while one-third of the amount be retained with the High Court in the form of an interest-bearing FDR. It was the case that the High Courts’ decisions on the subject in question are in conflict, as argued before the bench consisting of Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Dinesh Maheshwari, and Hrishikesh Roy.
However, the Calcutta High Court expressed the opposite view. The Calcutta High Court, in the case of New India Assurance Company Ltd v. Srikanta Tewari, deliberated on whether the claimant, who is also the insured, has the right to maintain the claim petition as the exclusive heir and legal representative of the deceased. The decedent’s death occurred in a motor accident that occurred while the insured was operating the vehicle. In contrast to insuring the insured individually, the High Court ruled that the insurer provides liability coverage. The Apex Court disregarded the appeal lodged against this judgment, thereby leaving the legal question unresolved.
