New Delhi, Aug. 3 -- Can the family of a murder victim claim compensation under the Motor Vehicles Act (MVA) merely because the crime took place inside a motor vehicle? The Supreme Court has answered that question by drawing a fine but significant distinction between the commission of a crime inside a vehicle and an accident "arising out of the use of a motor vehicle", holding that the mere presence of a vehicle in the chain of events is insufficient to attract liability under the Act.

A bench of justices Sanjay Karol and Augustine George Masih held that a claimant seeking compensation under the MVA must establish a causal nexus between the use of the motor vehicle and the death or injury. Where that link is missing, compensation cannot ...