The SUV's owner, Gautam Sharma, had alleged that his 33-year-old driver Sher Khan died from the impact of the accident as the airbags failed to deploy, contrary to the manufacturer's claim that it was an accident-safe vehicle. The SUV had allegedly rammed into a pole before toppling over.
Sharma's counsel Vivek Tankha had argued for criminal liability against the directors of the company, accusing them of vicarious liability for negligence as the airbags in the SUV failed to deploy, resulting in the driver's death besides injuring the owner and his gunman.
The manufacturer had argued that since the SUV toppled over and did not have a frontal impact, its airbags did not open. The accident took place near Mahoba in Uttar Pradesh on November 9, 2012.
But the directors' counsel Fali S Nariman questioned the legality of the argument for fastening criminal liability against the directors who were unconnected with the SUV delivered to Sharma by a dealer.
The bench agreed with Nariman and wanted to know from Tankha whether he would settle for compensation. Tankha agreed to Toyota's offer of Rs 15 lakh to the driver's family and Rs 10 lakh to the owner with interest from the date of accident.
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