A Relationship of Trust - L.I.C of India, 1st September, 2023

     Today is L.I.C of India's 67th Anniversary. It is also 26 years since it has broken our trust in the Corporation by betraying us, resigning ex-employees. The Corporation has been wilfully, illegally, arbitrarily and unconstitutionally repudiating the arrears payments due on wage revision; to its resigning ex-employees, since 1997. 

     These payments are applicable to all employees of the Corporation as a class of employees; as per the Supreme Courts directives.  

     Despite a Supreme Court ruling that states that L.I.C cannot create two different classes of employees for the above-mentioned payments, one that is eligible to receive and the other ineligible to receive; the unscrupulous Corporation does just that, during every Charter that is announced for Wage Revision.

     It does so, through a clause which has been declared as 'ultra vires' (unconstitutional) by the Supreme Court in 2007. Thus it acts in a "Contempt of Court" manner, brazenly defying the laws of our nation.

     I have recently written a letter to the Prime Minister of India, Sri Narendra Modiji to ensure that we get justice. We should be given our dues with compound interest. I haven't yet received any reply for that letter sent by Registered A.D. Nor have I received any confirmation regarding receipt of my email that I sent as a reminder to him as well as the P.M.O's office.

     It is dejavu for me again, after my long R.T.I struggle to get replies from the Corporation regarding its wrongdoings and getting insincere, half-baked replies to only 3 out of my 21 questions. The same Corporation that rattles off statistics about its growth and performance on various parameters, at the drop of a hat; curiously evaded giving me replies to basic questions such as the total number of employees whose arrears had been repudiated as well as the huge amounts repudiated illegally since 1st August, 1997. No reason exists on its records, for such repudiation! So it is arbitrary.

     So the Central Government's silence proves that those whom we rely on for justice, will keep on betraying us or ignoring us as if we don't exist at all! 

     I hope that the Honorable Prime Minister, with his usual "Can Do" attitude, has set things rolling for our payments...

    It is downright shameful when L.I.C of India claims today that "Trust is the foundation of any relationship... On our 67th Foundation Day, we thank you all for trusting us at every stage of your life and giving us the responsibility to protect and fulfil your dreams," yet keeps vital information and our legally rightful dues out of our reach! Doesn't it have any responsibility toward us? The fact that it is a premier government owned life insurance company, makes its cavalier attitude more unwarranted.

    All of us had also worked for many years in the Corporation to just be deprived of our dues when we needed them the most. I had worked sincerely for 18.5 years. 

    We, the long-suffering, resigning ex-employees of L.I.C of India request the Managing Board of Directors to kindly take a wise and just decision to pay us all our dues with compound interest and then make such tall statements of platitude. Or else this day will always remind us of our tremendous loss and the Corporation's unscrupulous gain at our expense!

     "Ek Atoot Rishta Bharose Ka" shouldn't just remain in print, in an advertisement in The Times of India, but should be implemented in actual practice!

      Kindly reinstate our trust in L.I.C of India.

      For those of you who would like to have all details regarding my lone crusade since 2010, for justice for myself as well as others sailing in the same boat as me; please peruse my blog at uberrimafideslicindia.blogspot.com.

Email to the Hon'ble Prime Minister, Sri Narendra Modiji and the P.M.O

 Dated 4th August, 2023

My 'Urgent Request' letter for payment of arrears due from L.I.C of India.

To,

Sri Narendra Modiji,

Hon'ble Prime Minister of India

New Delhi

Sub. : Payment of Wage Revision Arrears and Difference in Statutory Retirement Benefits and other allied dues, by L.I.C of India.

Ref. : My 'Urgent Request' letter dated 18th June, 2023; sent to you on 22nd June, 2023 through Registered Post, Acknowledgement Due.

Respected Sir,

                       With reference to the above, kindly let me know the progress in the matter as it is very urgent.

                        I didn't receive the acknowledgement from your office, with respect to my letter as referred to above.

                        Hence, I'm sending this email. Kindly acknowledge receipt and oblige.

                        Kindly assure me that the matter is receiving topmost priority and will reach its logical conclusion, i.e. payment of long outstanding dues with compound interest, to all the resigning ex-employees of the Corporation who have suffered due to the illegal repudiation of arrears by the Corporation since 1997.

                        I'm submitting the same letter here, for your ready reference. I am also attaching the same.

                       We hope that you will take prompt and appropriate action and oblige. 

                        Thanks and warm regards.

                                                                                               Yours respectfully,

                                                                                   Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan

************************************************************************************************************************Dear friends,

                          I haven't received any response or acknowledgement for this communication too! Hope this communication doesn't go the L.I.C way. After repudiation of arrears, I had corresponded with L.I.C of India, through a registered letter and 22 emails thereafter, for asking why it had repudiated my Wage Revision Arrears and received no response. 

                          Then I had filed an R.T.I application. That was the First Appeal. Then the Second Appeal followed... Then the C.I.C closed the case with a generic response that has almost become a template and is since then being given to each person who files an R.T.I appeal for the same reason as mine. Now that I have started corresponding with the Hon'ble Prime Minister and the Prime Minister's Office (P.M.O), let's hope and pray that my efforts don't go in vain again. I have started getting a sense of de' javu!

                          But then, think about it deeply! If the Hon'ble Prime Minister also can't resolve this long-standing vexed issue, who can?

                          Again, I always believe in "Where there is a will, there is a way!" and the watchwords "Patience and Perseverance". My lone crusade against L.I.C's grave injustice has been ongoing for 13 long years. Now it is "Do or Die", with dire circumstances at home. My motto "Never give up" props me up daily to keep going...

                         God willing, we'll soon see light at the end of the tunnel. I'm hopeful that the Hon'ble Prime Minister's timely intervention will work wonders on L.I.C's inertia.

                         We all will get the fruits of our patience in the form of our arrears and difference in retirement benefits and allied benefits with compound interest and damages, from L.I.C of India. 

                                                              SATYAMEVA JAYATE!

                                                                                                            Your friend,

                                                                                                            Priya