New Delhi, Nov 20 (PTI) The Delhi High Court has dismissed a plea seeking directions to the Union Home Ministry to provide information about Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana policyholders who have died to the Life Insurance Corporation of India so that their families can get the claim.
The high court said if the course of action suggested in the petition is adopted, it may lead to a scam as benefits under the policy may be appropriated by individuals who have not applied for it.
The court said the public interest litigation (PIL) was based on the presumption and assumption that the family members or nominees of the deceased were not aware that they held an insurance policy under the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima (PMJJBY) and that no policy documents had been provided to the policyholders.
"No letter written by any of the family members/nominees of the deceased has been enclosed complaining of non-issuance of policy documents to the policyholders. Consequently, there is no material on record justifying the said presumption and assumption," a bench of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela said.
The bench said policyholders cannot be presumed to be illiterate or incapable of approaching the courts for redressal of their grievances and added that there was no justification or rationale to entertain the petition.
"This court is further of the view that if the course of action as suggested in the present writ petition is adopted, it may lead to a scam as benefits under the policy may be appropriated by individuals who have not applied and who are not verified.
"Further, it is settled law that an insurance contract is a contract between the parties and no public interest petition is normally maintainable with regard to such contracts," it said.
The court was dealing with a PIL seeking directions to the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) to provide policy documents to all the policyholders of PMJJBY.
The petitioner also sought directions to the ministry to directly provide information about all the deceased individuals to the LIC so that their nominees or family members can directly get the insurance claim of Rs two lakh under the scheme.
The counsel for the petitioner stated that policy documents were not provided to the policyholders of PMJJBY as required under the regulations.
He said the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, MHA, have not been sharing the database of all deceased individuals in the country with the Department of Financial Services (DFS).
The lawyer said if such information is provided directly to DFS and LIC by the Registrar General of India, then DFS or LIC can themselves ascertain as to which all of the deceased individuals had held the insurance policy.