Wednesday October 13, 2010
Girl paralysed by go-kart mishap awarded RM1mil in damages
By SARBAN SINGH
[email protected]
SEREMBAN: “We have waited for this for more than 10 years.
New hope: Amrita, who was paralysed from chest down due to the accident, with her parents Josnial Kaur and Prem in this file picture.
“I hope my little girl will be able to lead a better life from now on and can fend for herself when we are gone.” These were the first words of retired air force personnel Prem Singh, 56, after the High Court here upheld a lower court’s decision to award his paraplegic 23-year-old daughter Amrita Kaur almost RM1mil in damages for injuries suffered while driving a go-kart at a resort in Port Dickson in December 1999.
Prem, who now works as a driver, said the award would help alleviate his burden. “We have gone through a lot to make ends meet. “Justice has finally been served,” he said. Earlier, judicial commissioner Ahmad Nasfy Yasin upheld a lower court’s decision to award Amrita almost RM1mil in damages in his judgment, delivered in chambers before Amrita’s counsel Haresh Mahadevan and Ramzani Idris, and representatives for the defendants, T. Jayadeva and C.L. Chin.
Amrita was only 12 when her long hair got caught in the go-kart’s rear engine while driving at a centre operated by Vitaton Holding Sdn Bhd at KM22 Pasir Panjang in Port Dickson. She has been confined to a wheelchair since the incident paralysed her from the chest down and is dependent on her parents for all her needs.
In the suit, both Amrita and Prem had claimed that the personnel on duty that day had failed to stop the machine and this had aggravated her injury. In May, the Sessions Court found that Vitaton (M) Sdn Bhd, Paul Sia and directors The Gi Ya and The Kai Sing were liable for Amrita’s injuries. It had ordered the second and third defendants to pay 30% each of the damages while Gi Ya and Kai Sing would pay 20% each.
The defendants were also ordered to pay Amrita RM200,000 for the complete paralysis she suffered with an additional 8% interest, RM336,000 for 60 years of nursing care and RM144,000 for diapers, disposal gloves, moisturising cream, olive oil and cotton wool. The court also directed the defendants to pay the RM43,956.84 surgery cost incurred at Gleneagles Intan Hospital in Kuala Lumpur where Amrita was referred to after the incident.
Haresh said the JC also found that the personnel on duty had not given Amrita a helmet for her size, which contributed to the mishap. Amrita said she planned to pursue a diploma in business management in Kuala Lumpur as the colleges in Seremban had no disabled-friendly facilities. “I had waited for a long time to do this,” she said. Amrita said she was happy as she would no longer be a burden to her parents and hoped they could focus on her siblings.
