Consumer Complaint No.87 of 2016

Date of filing: 13.5.2016                                                               Date of disposal: 03.02.2017

Complainant:               Sima Chakraborty, W/o. Late Samir Chakraborty, resident of Village: Bara, Post Office: Simlon, Police Station: Memari, District: Burdwan.

-V E R S U S-

Opposite Party:    1.     Burdwan Head Post Office, Burdwan Division, Represented by its Sr. Superintendent of Post Offices, having its office at PO., PS. & District: Burdwan, PIN – 713 101.

2.      Bohar Post Office, represented by its Post Master, having its office at Vill. & PO. Bohar, PS: Memari, District: Burdwan, PIN – 713 430.

3.      Post Master General (West Bengal Circle), having its office at Yogayog Bhavan, Kolkata – 700 012.

Present:      Hon’ble President: Sri Asoke Kumar Mandal.

                        Hon’ble Member: Smt. Silpi Majumder.

           Hon’ble Member:  Sri Pankaj Kumar Sinha.

Appeared for the Complainant:                     Ld. Advocate, Suvro Chakraborty.

Appeared for the Opposite Party No. 1:       Ld. Advocate, Murari Mohan Kumar.

Appeared for the Opposite Party No. 2&3:  None.

J U D G E M E N T

This complaint is filed by the complainant u/S. 12 of the C.P. Act, 1986 alleging deficiency in service and unfair trade practice against the Ops as the Ops did not settle her insurance claim till filing of this complaint.

The fact of the case is that the husband of the complainant, since deceased, incepted a Rural Postal Life Insurance Policy from the OP in the year 2009. The OP issued a policy certificate bearing No. R-WB-EA-214842 for the sum assured of Rs. 1, 00,000=00. The issuing date of the policy was on 08.12.2009 and maturity date is 08.12.2032. It is pertinent to mention here that the maturity premium of the said policy is Rs. 3, 68,000=00. The complainant is the nominee of the said policy. The complainant begs to submit that due to ill luck of the complainant her husband died on 28.7.2014. After the death of her husband the complainant intimated about the incident of death to the OP-2. After getting such intimation the Ops issued claim form in favour of the complainant. The OP-2 also asked the complainant for submitting succession certificate and the letter of indemnity along with claim from and other documents. As such the complainant after filling up the claim from submitted all the documents as required by the Ops before the OP-2 on 14.12.2014. But very surprisingly the OP-2 made phone call to the complainant and asked for submitting some documents. The complainant after collecting the documents as required by the OP-1 sent those documents to the Ops on 07.3.2015 but inspite of receiving the documents the Ops kept themselves mum regarding the settlement of the claim of the complainant. As the complainant did not receive any satisfactory answer from the Ops inspite of her several requests, she sent another letter dated 24.6.2015 to the OP-1 by asking the status of her claim, as well as, a request to settle her claim early. But the Ops neither gave any reply to the letter of the complainant nor settle the claim of the complainant till date of filing of this complaint and as such the complainant along with her two children have been passing her days in financial stringencies. The complainant also sent a letter to the Post Master General (West Bengal Circle), Yogayog Bhavan, Kolkata – 700 012 on 22.7.2015 but this time also the complainant got no relief. Therefore, in the month of December, 2015 the complainant received a letter from the OP-1 in which the date has been mentioned as 03.12.2015. After getting such letter the complainant came to learn that the OP-1 asked the Kalna Division of Indian Post for submitting claim form with signature of enquiring Officer. From the said letter it is clear the Ops are unnecessarily dragging the matter for an unlimited period. Under such circumstances, the complainant is compelled to file this case before this ld. Forum for deficiency in service and unfair trade practice. The complainant prayed for a direction directing the Ops to settle the claim of the complainant by way of sum assured of the insurance policy to the complainant. He also prayed a sum of Rs. 50,000=00 towards mental pain, agony and harassment and a sum of Rs. 2,000=00 as litigation cost.

Notices were served upon the Ops. The Op-1 contested the case by filing written version. Though the notices were received by the OP-2&3, but none appeared to contest the case by filing written version. So, the case is heard ex parte against the OP- 2&3.

The Op-1 submits that the complainant has suppressed the vital point of the cause of death of her deceased husband. The Op-1 states that it has come to learn on departmental enquiry that as per enquiry report of Memari Police Station, the insured Samir Chakraborty i.e.  the husband of the complainant conmi9tted suicide on 28.7.2014 at his  own residential building due to mental depression. After the said death the complainant claiming her as nominee of the said insured lodged a claim without enclosing the copy of the FRT of said unnatural death accepted by the Hon’ble Court and suppressed the fact in her claim. The OP asked the complainant for the said FRT ensuring the said death. In the meantime one copy of FRT was issued by Memari Police Station in connection with Memari P.S. U.D. Case No. 59/14, dated 28.7.2014.

The complainant was also asked to produce papers of medical treatment prior to the incident. The claimant failed to produce any of those papers. She made a declaration to the Post Master, Katwa H.O. that Sri Samir Chakraborty had undergone medical treatment as & when required and had been cured. After that he had maintained normal life but no papers related to such treatment are available with her. It may also be noted that one complaint was lodged by one Sourav Chakraborty in the matter of unnatural death from which the case was cropped up. In the state of thing until the matter in dispute is decided by the judicial authority this Op cannot proceed furtherto settle the claim. The complainant’s present claim case in that state of thing is a premature one and not tenable in law.

Decision with reasons:-

            Perused all the documents submitted by the complainant, as well as, by the Op-1. From the FRT issued by the Memari Police Station, it is seen that the deceased husband of the complainant comitted suicide on 28.7.2014, that is why, a judicial enquiry is still running on. It is also not evident from the documents produced by the complainant that her deceased husband had been suffering from long illness as per requirement of the Ops. Thus the claim of the complainant cannot be settled at present by the Ops. Hence, the complaint made by the complainant is a premature one in the present state of thing. Accordingly, the complainant has failed to prove his case.

            Hence, it is

O r d e r e d

that the Consumer Complaint being No. 87/2016 is dismissed on contest against the Op-1 and ex parte against the OP- 2&3 without any cost.

            Let plain copies of this order be supplied to the parties free of cost as per provisions of law.

                   (Asoke Kumar Mandal)        

             Dictated and corrected by me.                                                      President      

                                                                                                           DCDRF, Burdwan

                    (Pankaj Kumar Sinha)

                       Member

                     DCDRF, Burdwan

                                                      (Silpi Majumder)                        (Pankaj Kumar Sinha)

                                                          Member                                             Member

                                                     DCDRF, Burdwan                            DCDRF, Burdwan