In Brief
A 28-year-old self-employed man died in a motor vehicle accident. The Tribunal awarded Rs. 6.24 lakh compensation estimating his income at Rs. 4,000 per month; the High Court increased this to Rs. 11.41 lakh using Rs. 5,000 monthly income. The Supreme Court held the Tribunal and High Court erred by disregarding the deceased's Income Tax Return (showing Rs. 9,855 monthly income), applying wrong personal expense deductions given 7 dependents, and not enhancing conventional heads. The Court awarded Rs. 25,91,388 total compensation at 9% interest per annum, applying correct principles for income, future prospects (40%), dependency calculation, and enhanced conventional heads.
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