Nearly a year and a half after an Express staffer was killed in a chilling road accident in the city, the family has finally got financial relief. A mega Lok Adalat conducted here on Saturday has awarded a compensation of `20 lakh after the insurance company and the victim’s family counsel reached a compromise.
P Purushotaman, working as a staff in the process department of Express, was killed in one of the goriest accidents in the city in August 2011 after he was hit and dragged for nearly three and a half kilometres by a rashly driven car along the Tiruchy Road. Purushotaman was on his way back from Chengalpattu, where he had gone to meet his family, and was walking along the road when the mishap occurred.
Apart from suffering multiple fractures, Purushotaman lost almost the entire skin flap on his head, back and legs. He died after battling in hospital for nearly 13 days.
Purushotaman’s family had filed a petition seeking compensation for the loss before the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal here.
However, the insurance company, Bajaj Allianz, and the victim’s family counsel preferred to settle for a compromise before the Lok Adalat. While the family’s counsel originally sought a compensation of `27 lakh, both parties settled for an amount of `20 lakh.
“We have reached a compromise and agreed to pay a sum of `20 lakh as compensation to the family. We will deposit the cheque in the court within two days after receiving the Lok Adalat’s order,” said S Vishwadharani, senior legal executive of the insurance company.
Out of the `20 lakh, the Lok Adalat has ordered to pay `14 lakh to Purushotaman’s wife P Nirmala and the remaining `6 lakh would be equally distributed among Purushotaman’s mother P Sagunthala and his two children P Chandrasekaran and P Gomathi.