Bengaluru: The High Court of Karnataka has dismissed an appeal filed by National Insurance Company seeking deduction of government-issued ex-gratia payments from the compensation awarded to the families of 13 victims who died in the 2013 LPG tanker explosion at Perne in Dakshina Kannada district.

A single-judge bench of Justice P. Sree Sudha held that ex-gratia amounts released by the government constitute a form of social security support intended to mitigate the loss of income suffered by the affected families. The court clarified that such payments cannot be linked to, or adjusted against, statutory compensation awarded under motor accident claim proceedings.

The court stated that the ex-gratia amount paid by Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) could not be deducted from th

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