In a recent ruling, the Supreme Court clarified that attempting to overtake another vehicle does not automatically constitute rash or negligent driving. The judgment came from a case concerning an accident compensation claim under the Motor Vehicles Act.
Justices CT Ravikumar and Sanjay Karol reviewed an appeal related to a tragic accident where a motorcyclist and his wife were struck by two tractors. The wife died instantly, and the husband sustained severe injuries. Initially, the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal attributed part of the blame to the appellants, reducing their compensation claim from Rs 12,00,000 to Rs 1,01,250 based on contributory negligence. This decision was partly amended by the High Court, which increased the compensation amount by correcting the multiplier used for calculations.
The Supreme Court overturned the tribunal’s finding, stating that merely attempting to overtake does not indicate rash driving. They emphasized that overtaking is a routine maneuver and should not be judged as negligent without substantial evidence. The Court noted that the primary fault lay with one of the tractor drivers who was speeding and driving from the wrong side.
In their assessment, the Justices referred to precedents from previous rulings which confirm that contributory negligence must be directly linked to the plaintiff’s actions. They found that the tribunal’s assumption of negligence was misplaced. Consequently, the Court revised the compensation amount, increasing it significantly to Rs 11,25,000 and adjusting the interest rate to 8% from the original 12%.
This decision highlights the Court’s stance that ordinary driving actions, such as overtaking, should not be deemed negligent without clear evidence of dangerous behavior.
