K. Kannan, J. (oral)
1. The appeals are by the Insurance Company assailing the awards passed for claiming a compensation for death and injuries respectively arising out of a motor accident involving a collision of a motor cyclist carrying three persons and the insured's car. The only point urged by the learned counsel for the appellant is on the aspect of negligence. The counsel would want this Court to make an inference from the fact that three persons were riding a motor cycle which was an offence under the relevant provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act and Rules that the driver of the motor cycle himself had contributed to the accident. The issue of negligence and more so contributory negligence is essentially a matter of evidence and no presumption could be made that the driver of a motor cycle who is guilty of an independent offence should also be taken as guilty of contributing to the accident and must be guilty of contributory negligence. Indeed there are cases even that a person who does not have a driving license at all and involves himself in an accident does not make possible an inference that any other vehicle caught in collision with a vehicle driven by a person without license must be deemed to have contributed to the accident. It is another way of saying that an offender under some provision of Motor Vehicles Act does not necessarily draw inference against himself that he is guilty of negligence. As observed negligence would require an independent proof of how the accident had come about. Whether there had been a lack of standard of care which a driver of a motor cycle has to apply himself. If there was any evidence of the driver of the motor cycle that there was any negligence on the part of the motor cyclist or that he had lost balance by carrying more passengers than what he was permitted to put, there was probably a case for examining the issue in favour of the insurer for a point contended by the counsel. However, if there was no such evidence brought against the claimants that the accident had taken place only by the fact that there were three persons, I will find that there is no scope for making such inference. In this case, the Tribunal has found the driver of the motor vehicle to be responsible for the accident. I would find no cause for intervention in appeals.
2. The awards are maintained and the appeals are dismissed.
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