Rajkot: The Motor Vehicle Accident Claims Tribunal awarded Rs 66.47 lakh with interest to the family of a 34-year-old supervisor who was crushed by a reversing truck inside a salt factory in Gandhidham in 2021.The tribunal directed the truck owner and insurer to pay the compensation for the death of Yogesh Girdhani, holding the driver negligent and rejecting the insurance company’s objections on liability.The accident occurred on the night of April 23, 2021, inside the compound of a salt unit in Gandhidham. Girdhani, a supervisor, was overseeing the unloading of salt from a truck when, around 9pm, the driver, Kishan Dangar, reversed the vehicle rashly without checking behind. Girdhani was crushed under the rear wheel, suffered grievous injuries and died at a govt hospital the same day.An offence was registered at Kandla Marine police station.Girdhani’s legal heirs — his wife Chahat, minor daughter and mother Jyoti — filed a claim petition seeking Rs 1 crore in compensation, stating that he was the family’s sole breadwinner.Insurance Company’s Defence RejectedThe truck owner neither appeared before the tribunal nor filed a statement. The insurance company denied the driver’s negligence and disputed the deceased’s age and income. It also claimed the driver did not have a valid driving licence at the time of the accident and argued that it could not be held liable.The PSU general insurance company further contended that the accident occurred within a private factory compound and not on a public road. It also argued that the family had already received Rs 14 lakh under the Workmen’s Compensation Act from the employer’s insurer and any further award would amount to double recovery.In its order dated April 30, 2026, the tribunal dismissed both arguments. It held that a factory compound where transport vehicles routinely enter and exit cannot be treated as a purely private place to deny insurance liability.On the compensation already received, the tribunal noted that it arose from a separate insurance contract between the employer and a different insurer and did not bar the family from seeking compensation under the Motor Vehicles Act against the truck owner and driver.Compensation Calculation and DistributionWhile calculating the compensation, the tribunal relied on Girdhani’s income tax returns to determine his average annual net income and added 40% towards future prospects.Sagar Rathod, the applicants’ lawyer, said the tribunal ordered that “the applicants to recover Rs 66.47 lakh from the opponents jointly and severally together with running interest at the rate of 9% per annum from the date of filing of petition till realization of the amount along with proportionate costs of the petition”. He added that “the total amount of compensation with interest will be over Rs 1 crore”.The tribunal directed that 50% of the award be paid to the wife, 20% to the minor daughter and 30% to the mother.
