Summary
In a motor accident death claim, the Supreme Court set aside the High Court's reduction of compensation, holding that the age of the deceased should be taken from his School Leaving Certificate rather than his Aadhaar Card, which is proof of identity and not per se of date of birth. It restored the Tribunal's notional income, applied a multiplier of 14, raised interest to 8% and fixed compensation at Rs 15,00,000.
Issues
- Where the School Leaving Certificate and the Aadhaar Card record different dates of birth, which is to be taken as authoritative for determining the age of the deceased.
- Whether the High Court was justified in reducing the compensation awarded by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal by substituting minimum wage rates for the DC rates used to fix notional income.
- Whether the High Court could reduce the rate of interest without recording reasons.
Provisions considered
- Section 94(2), Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015Relied on to show that a school date of birth certificate has statutory recognition, being placed first in the order of evidence for age determination, ahead of a municipal birth certificate and a medical test; this supported preferring the School Leaving Certificate over the Aadhaar Card. (¶¶ 9.4, 9.5)
Held
- An appellate court should not substitute its own view for that of the court below or interfere merely because another view is possible; it examines only whether the decision suffers from perversity, illegality or a similar vice. The High Court erred in reducing the notional income on the basis that state minimum wage rates were a better yardstick, when nothing showed that the DC rates notified for Rohtak did not apply to the deceased. (¶¶ 9.1, 9.2, 9.3)
- A School Leaving Certificate enjoys statutory recognition as evidence of age under Section 94(2) of the JJ Act. The Aadhaar Card is designed as a unique proof of identity, and UIDAI's Circular No. 08 of 2023, referring to the MeitY office memorandum of 20 December 2018, states that it is not per se proof of date of birth; High Courts in various contexts have likewise declined to treat it as conclusive proof of age. (¶¶ 9.4, 9.5, 9.6, 9.7, 9.8)
- The Tribunal rightly determined the age of the deceased from the School Leaving Certificate, so the date of birth was taken as 7 October 1970 and the multiplier applicable was 14, not 13 as applied by the High Court on the basis of the Aadhaar Card. (¶¶ 10, 12)
- The High Court gave no reason for reducing the rate of interest. Compensation in motor accident claims arises from injury or death and must be just and reasonable; interest was enhanced to 8% from the date of the claim petition. (¶ 11)
- Recomputing compensation on the principles in Pranay Sethi with notional income of Rs 9,000 per month, 25% future prospects, one-third personal deduction, multiplier 14 and conventional heads with 10% increases, the total came to Rs 14,41,500, rounded off to Rs 15,00,000. (¶¶ 12, 13, 14)
Result
Appeals allowed; compensation fixed at Rs 15,00,000 with interest at 8% from the date of filing of the claim petition, to be released to the claimants in the manner directed by the Tribunal. No order as to costs.