An accident claims tribunal in the city has deducted 60% of the compensation amount for a teenager who was injured after falling off the footboard of an Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) bus in 2015. The tribunal held that he was more responsible for the accident than the bus driver.

S Ajith Kumar of Tsunami Colony in the city had moved the tribunal seeking a compensation of 20 lakh for the accident that occurred in Mar 2015. He was 17 then. According to his petition, he fell off an Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) bus (56 C) near ESI hospital in Tondiarpet after the driver negotiated a speed breaker "in a rash & negligent manner". In response, the transport corporation contended that its driver didn't indulge in rash driving & the injuries of the petitioner were of his own doing.

Tribunal Judge A Shanthi, after perusing submissions from both sides, noted that when both sides allege negligence against each other, the First Information Report (FIR) gains importance.

The tribunal cited portions of the First Information Report (FIR) filed by the boy's father, which stated, "My son had taken the bus from Tiruvottiyur to Parrys Corner... while the bus was crossing Employees' State Insurance (ESI) hospital, my son who was travelling footboard fell down when the bus hit a speed-breaker."

The recitals of the First Information Report (FIR) show that the petitioner travelled footboard & invited the accident, the tribunal ruled, & said that it is inclined to fix 60 % liability on the petitioner & only 40 % liability on Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC).

After computing various factors such as loss of income, loss of earning capacity, disfigurement & other expenses, the tribunal calculated that the petitioner is eligible for a compensation of 1.34 lakh.

"Of this amount, only 40 % shall be borne by the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC). Hence, the petitioner is entitled only for a sum of 53,600," the tribunal held.