LI Network
Published on: November 24, 2023 at 22:35 IST
Justice Navin Chawla of the Delhi High Court has annulled an order issued by the Motor Accident Claim Tribunal, which had directed the excavation of a deceased man’s grave to conduct a DNA test for verifying claims of compensation by individuals asserting to be his legal heirs.
The decision came in response to a petition by individuals claiming to be the legal heirs of the deceased Sujaat Ali, who lost his life in a motor vehicle accident. The Tribunal’s order, dated December 12, 2022, was challenged by the petitioners.
The Tribunal had issued the exhumation order based on the Detailed Accident Report (DAR) filed by the Investigating Officer.
It claimed that the petitioners were “greedy persons” attempting to secure compensation without being actual relatives of the deceased. The court had stayed the order in February.
Justice Chawla emphasized that claimants must establish their case and subsequent entitlement to compensation before the Tribunal by presenting evidence.
The court stated, “The evidence so produced can always be confronted and rebutted by the respondent nos.2 to 4, being the driver, the owner, and the insurer of the Offending Vehicle, respectively, in accordance with the law. There was no warrant for the learned Tribunal to have directed the dead body of the deceased to be exhumed for purposes of carrying out the DNA.”
Justice Chawla considered the status report, which indicated that the deceased’s identity was confirmed through further investigation, including scrutiny of a Ration Card, Old Voter List, Certificate from the Pradhan of Gram Panchayat, and local inquiries.
While staying the order, the court highlighted that the Tribunal failed to recognize that a DNA test cannot be ordered routinely, referencing the Supreme Court’s decision in Aparna Ajinkya Firodia v. Ajinkya Arun Firodia.
Case Title: SUJAAT ALI (DECEASED) THROUGH LRS v. GOVERNMENT OF N.C.T OF DELHI & ORS.”
