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Judgment
NO one is present on behalf of the appellants in spite of notice sent to them. Mr. R.A. Tiwari, Advocate is present for the Life Insurance Corporation. We have looked into the matter ourselves.
THE case of the complainants, who are appellants, was that appellant No. 1 Vinod Kumar Gupta had taken a joint life policy for himself and his wife Smt. Suman Gupta which contemplated that upon the death of either of them the L.I.C. will pay to the surviving spouse the sum assured and benefits, if any, that may have accrued under the policy. Smt. Suman died on 30.3.1990 but the L.I.C. was not discharging the obligation under the policy. The case of the L.I.C. before the District Forum was that even though the initial deposit of the amount of premium had been made before the death of Smt. Suman Gupta, the remaining formalities were yet to be completed on that date and that acceptance of the proposal submitted in respect of the policy was made on 31.3.1990. Since Smt. Suman Gupta died before that date, the L.I.C. was not liable to pay the amount of the sum assured under the policy to the surviving spouse.
On the basis of the evidence placed before it the District Forum came to the conclusion that acceptance of the policy was made by the L.I.C. on 31.3.1990 and that Smt. Suman Gupta had died prior to it on 30.3.1990. The District Forum also found, that the documents submitted on behalf of the proposers revealed that Smt. Suman Gupta had purportedly signed on 31.3.1990 though she had admittedly died a day earlier. On this basis the District Forum held that the complainants had not approached it with clean hands.
AFTER going through the Memo of Appeal and hearing Mr. Tewari, we find no infirmity in the order made by the District Forum which has directed the L.I.C. to refund the amount of Rs. 977/- deposited by way of initial deposit alongwith interest at 18%. Nothing has been pointed out in the Memo of Appeal which may indicate that the conclusion recorded by the District Forum about the essential fact of Smt. Suman Gupta dying on 30.3.1990 and the acceptance of the policy on 31.3.1990 was erroneous, in any manner. We find no merit in this appeal and dismiss it but without any order as to costs. Let a copy of this order be sent to the appellants by post and made available to the learned Counsel for the L.I.C. as per rules. Appeal dismissed.