Geeta Devi. Picture by Chinlop Fudong Lepcha

Kalimpong, April 2: The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) has directed the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) to pay the insured value of Rs 2 lakh to the widow of Kishori Lal Agarwal, a resident of R. C. Mintri Road here, who had died in a fire in 1997.

Giving its verdict on an appeal filed by Geeta Devi, widow of Agarwal, the commission said the money should be paid with nine per cent interest from the date of completing three months after the claim was made till the day of payment. The LIC was also asked to pay Devi Rs 10,000 for legal costs.

The long road to justice began for the Agarwals immediately after their patriarch Kishori Lal died on November 12, 1997 when their house got engulfed in a fire. Two of his grandchildren had also perished in the blaze. On July 28 the same year, Kishori Lal had submitted a proposal to insure his life for a sum of Rs 1 lakh with double accidental benefits. However, a day before the LIC accepted his proposal on November 13, 1997, he met with the fatal accident.

A little over a month after his death, Geeta Devi intimated the LIC of her husband’s death, and registered an insurance claim. However, the LIC refused to entertain her claim on the ground that it had not issued the acceptance letter during Agarwal’s lifetime. Geeta Devi subsequently filed a case in the District Consumers’ Redressal Forum, which upheld the appeal. Not satisfied with the verdict, the LIC successfully challenged the forum order in the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission.

In turn, Geeta Devi approached the national commission against the state commission ruling. The NCDRC in its March 4 verdict upheld her appeal and asked the LIC to pay up.

The national commission in its verdict cited two Supreme Court rulings. It noted that even though the LIC underwrote Kishori Lal’s acceptance proposal a day after his death, is is very clear that noting, drafting and orders of the competent authority were obtained before that. As the death has taken place a day earlier, the decision on the noting part of the file must have been taken earlier. The commission also noted that the LIC had taken a long time to process the insurance proposal.

The LIC refused comment.