Rash driving case: Cyclist's family gets Rs 18 lakh compensation

New Delhi: Family members of a 33-year-old cyclist, who died last year after being hit by a rashly driven car, have been awarded a compensation of over Rs 18 lakh by a Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) in New Delhi. The tribunal awarded Rs 18,42,408 as compensation to the wife, five children and mother of victim Ved Ram, who was working as part-time cleaner with a Member of Parliament and former minister and was running a food stall. [caption id=“attachment_1191899” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Reuters[/caption] It also directed The New India Assurance Company Ltd, with which the offending car was insured, to pay the compensation amount to the family of the deceased. “In view of testimony of prosecution witness 1 (victim’s wife Bimlesh) and documents on record, the petitioners have prima facie succeeded in proving that Ved Ram sustained injuries in this accident caused by the offending vehicle driven by respondent number 1 (driver) in a rash and negligent manner,” MACT Presiding Officer Harish Dudani said. According to the family members, the accident took place on 9 October, last year near Akbar Road when Ved Ram was going on his cycle and the speeding car hit him. An eyewitness had told the court that the accident took place at 11.30 am when the rashly driven car hit the victim due to which he fell down and received fatal injuries. Car driver Dinesh Kumar had taken the victim to hospital where he was declared brought dead. The car driver had claimed before the tribunal that the accident had taken place due to the negligence of the cyclist as he came in front of the vehicle without noticing the traffic. He had also said that he tried his best to save the victim. The victim’s family members had said that Ved Ram was earning Rs 21,000 per month from the cleaning work and food stall business. PTI