GUWAHATI: The Supreme Court has reiterated that police records can be utilised by tribunals and courts to determine negligence in motor accident claims on Thursday, January 2. A bench comprising Justice CT Ravikumar and Justice Rajesh Bindal referred to the Mangla Ram v. Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd. and Ors(2018) judgment held that charge sheets and other documents collected during police investigations can be relied upon in such cases.
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In the case, the Court had stated that the filing of a charge sheet prima facie indicates the driver's complicity in negligent and rash driving. The Supreme Court observed that the question of negligence, which is central to awarding compensation in motor vehicle accident claims, should be evaluated based on the available evidence. Where police records are presented, the Court noted, it is appropriate to consider them, given the objectives of the Motor Vehicles Act.
The observations were made while dismissing an appeal by an insurer challenging a High Court decision in a motor accident compensation case. The insurer had objected to the Tribunal's reliance on the final report filed against the driver of the offending vehicle, a procedure which the High Court upheld as valid.
The Court also referred to the recent judgment in Mathew Alexander v. Mohammed Shafi & Anr (2023), which clarified that claimants in motor accident cases only need to establish their claims based on a preponderance of probabilities rather than meeting the stricter standard of proof required in criminal cases.
