'Trust' is a word that doesn't exist in the Corporation's dictionary! L.I.C of India Day - 1st September, 2026

  The Insurance Week will undoubtedly be celebrated with great gusto by everyone in L.I.C. of India. 

  Its ad in the TOI dated 1st September, 2026 states that it is proudly rejoicing its 70th Anniversary. 

   The ad states that: "Trust, across generations. Real security is a gift passes down from one generation to the next.... Celebrating 70 years of trust."

          May we remind the Corporation that it has been royally betraying the resigning ex-employees' trust since 1st August, 1997 with the same flourish! Repudiated our arrears and left us in the lurch!

          Does the Corporation even know the meaning of the word "TRUST'?

         The tagline below the LIC logo reads as "Har Pal Aapke Saath".

         Well, that remains true for us too as its massive betrayal is always with us, each second of our lives. Now that we are "Out of sight and out of mind" for LIC! Even out of its Books of Accounts.

         LIC has gleefully and perversely robbed us of all our joy. 

        While the assets amounting to a whopping Rs. 31.11 lakh crores (as in 2024) and even more, are a feather in its cap, what about L.I.C's liabilities? 

          Most importantly, what about the liability that L.I.C. of India has towards its resigning ex-employees, whose arrears of wage revision and accruing retirement benefits' difference; have been callously and illegally repudiated by it, (deliberately ignoring a Supreme Court Judgment!), for nearly three decades, since 1997; to be precise?

          This Insurance Week will be really 'happy' for us and worth celebrating doubly, if all of us who have been wilfully wronged by the Corporation; get all our long outstanding dues with compound interest as per prevailing rates! 

          After all, we have equally contributed towards the Corporation's success!

   

          Our torturous journey of a thousand miles is still ongoing... and will continue till we reach our destination where we will get our rightful dues from L.I.C of India. 

                      (We sincerely hope and pray that all of us live to see that DAY! Wonder how many generations of ours and the resigning ex-employees (Future) will have to endure the same betrayal, as the illegal and ultra vires clause of repudiation is faithfully carried in every Wage Revision Charter of L.I.C. of India! Employees will keep resigning and the Corporation will keep committing the same sin over and over again. Maybe it should be renamed as Life Insurance Sin of India.)

We hope that I.R.D.A, the Managing Board of Directors of L.I.C. of India, the Finance Minister and the Prime Minister are listening!

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/link-insurer-ceo-salaries-to-customer-outcomes-irdai/articleshow/131189280.cms

Link insurer CEO salaries to customer outcomes: Irdai

Mayur Shetty / TNN / May 19, 2026, 08:39 IST

Reduce Focus On Profits, Improve Transparency, Curb Misselling’Irdai has sought to link insurance company CEO salaries to customer outcomes, introduce clawbacks and increase transparency. This follows a study by the regulator which showed that CEO salaries were all over the place with key management at times accounting for a big chunk of the wage cost. The regulator also saw the need to reduce the focus on profits and address misselling.In a discussion paper circulated among CEOs, Irdai said there is a need “to move beyond short-term financial performance and focus on sustainable, policyholder-centric outcomes” as existing compensation structures have been “largely tied to revenue, profit, and shareholder returns” and have “failed to capture the long-term value created through positive customer outcomes”.

Irdai has proposed an industry-wide framework that would tie executive pay to a mix of customer, shareholder and regulatory metrics, with customer-related parameters carrying the highest weight. These include measures such as claim settlement timelines, grievance redressal, transparency in product disclosures and overall customer experience. The move is aimed at ensuring that “customer satisfaction, trust, and loyalty” become central to how top management performance is evaluated.

The paper proposes penalties in compensation structures through malus and clawback provisions in cases where insurers fall short on conduct. Pay could be adjusted downward if “customer complaints spike”, “regulatory breaches occur”, or “misselling or unethical practices are identified”, signalling a sharper regulatory focus on accountability at the top.The discussion ties in with the regulators move to curb expenses in selling insurance through commissions and distribution costs to make insurance more affordable. Also there is a wide variation in salaries. In the case of leading life insurers, the standard deviation in CEO pay is as high as Rs 7.9 crore, while for non-life insurers it rises to Rs 11.4 crore. Concerns have also been raised about the “top heavy structure” of insurers. In some cases, management remuneration accounts for as much as 14% of the total salary outgo.The regulator argues that better alignment of pay with customer outcomes could help address these structural issues by improving trust in insurance products and driving wider adoption. The paper said that integrating customer-centric metrics would ensure growth without “compromising customer trust and long-term value”.To improve transparency and demonstrate customercentricity, Irdai has also proposed public disclosure of CEO and KMP remuneration.

END OF REPORT

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Respected Prime Minister and Finance Minister of India,

In the light of the above-mentioned report, please ensure to link L.I.C of India's CEOs salaries to the enormous liabilities that they have created for the Corporation w.e.f. 1st August, 1997 since when the Wage Revision Arrears and Difference in Statutory Retirement Benefits due to the resigning employees have been illegally and unjustly repudiated.

All those CEOs must be punished and their remuneration/retirement emoluments must be confiscated. Even those officials in the Government who ratified the Corporation's unjust and illegal decisions must pay a similar price. Only then will they feel the pinch of having their hard-earned money fraudulently taken away from them! 

We, the long-suffering resigning employees of the Corporation have been bearing the brunt of their unjust and illegal decision to repudiate our arrears and other allied payments, as above-mentioned for nearly three decades.

It's high time that justice is delivered to us in the form of the above-mentioned punishment to them and prompt payment of all our dues with compound interest till date; to all of us.

Thanks in eager anticipation.

Yours sincerely,

The long suffering, resigning ex-employees of L.I.C of India

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Respected Chairman (IRDAI),

Kindly consider linking L.I.C of India's CEOs salaries to the enormous liabilities that they have created for the Corporation w.e.f 1st August, 1997 since when the Wage Revision Arrears and Difference in Statutory Retirement Benefits due to the resigning employees have been illegally and unjustly repudiated.

Why has your institution not done anything for the resigning ex-employees whose arrears have been repudiated illegally since 3 decades? This unjust action is for all the sister concerns of the Corporation and General Insurance companies of the Government too. Surely you are aware of it!

Kindly read the above-mentioned request to the PM and FM of India and do the needful at the earliest.

Thanks in eager anticipation.

Yours sincerely,

The long suffering, resigning ex-employees of L.I.C of India

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Isn't it high time that employers focus on all their employees, past and present who have contributed to the success of their organisations? These profits pay for the CEOs' salaries!

Employees are as important as customers.

Ex-employees are also as important as current employees.

The Supreme Court recognizes this basic fact, but not the Government and IRDAI!

International Labor Day is a matter of pity for us, the long suffering ex-employees of L.I.C of India

                                                       Shocking but true!

             
                   L.I.C of India betrays its resigning employees’ Good Faith!

It repudiates Arrears’ payment and difference in Retirement dues to its resigning employees.

   
      The Life Insurance Corporation of India, the number one life insurer in the whole world, has not paid arrears of wage payments and arrears of difference payable under Statutory retirement benefits like Provident Fund and Gratuity, due to its resigning employees; since the 1^st of August 1997, as revealed by answers to my RTI application. Revision of the wage bill in the Corporation is done after a period of every five years, but the notification is invariably delayed and the arrears are always paid after a gap of three years after they are actually due.

      The Board of Directors of LIC of India has taken the decision to repudiate the arrears and sent it to the Finance Ministry for approval, though it is a purely administrative decision and not a policy decision. Only policy decisions involving public interest need to be referred to the Finance Ministry. The decision of the Finance Ministry also needs to be analyzed as to why it approved the Corporation’s decisions without due consideration of their legality and Court Judgments on the issue.

     The Corporation has adopted a strategy of depriving its voluntarily resigning employees, that is those who are retiring before twenty years of service, of their legitimate dues by simply resorting to announcement of the notification after inclusion of a clause in a Gazette notified by the Finance Ministry of India, that such employees will not be eligible for payment of arrears. This effectively means that even if a resigning employee has been in service, that is, on roll of the Corporation on the date from which the arrears were effective, he/she will not be eligible to get arrears’ payment. This is illegal as wages are rights of an employee, according to our Indian Constitution and Labor Laws.

For instance, I had resigned after 18.5 years of service on 2^nd July 2010 and the notification for payment of arrears due from 1^st August 2007 was announced on 11th October, 2010. Legally, I was entitled to the arrears of difference in my wages from 1^st August 2007 to 2^nd July 2010 but it was denied on the basis of this Gazette and subsequent Circular’s notification by the Corporation.

     Similarly, the Provident Fund and Gratuity being Statutory retirement benefits, their difference will also have to be paid as per the revised, enhanced wages. All the allowances, perks, etc. would also have to be calculated accordingly and the difference would have to be paid to that resigning employee.

The Corporation wrongly differentiates between the two classes of voluntarily resigning employees as those who have completed 20 years of service and those who have resigned before completing 20 years of service. The first class is entitled to the Wage Revision Arrears’ Payments and the second class isn’t entitled to it! Since the wage revisions were announced for all the employees of the Corporation, as a class, the Corporation should not deny the benefits to the resigning employees.

Besides, the Minutes of the Corporation’s Board Meeting with points regarding recommendations made to the Finance Ministry, for repudiation of arrears and retirement benefits; have not been given to me as they are not available with the Corporation! There is also no rationale on record; of this decision by the Corporation, as revealed by the replies received from the Corporation, in response to the RTI Application made by me; to L.I.C of India.

 The Corporation has also replied that the Central Government takes this decision to repudiate arrears’ payments and hence it has repudiated arrears’ and other allied retirement benefits. 

In fact, it is the Managing Board of Directors of L.I.C of India, which takes this decision. The Central Government of course, dutifully and unquestioningly ratifies it! 

So what if the Supreme Court has declared the Clause of Repudiation to be ultra vires (unconstitutional)! Some institutions are seemingly above the laws of this land.

A symbiotic relationship between the Corporation and Government  - always at play and display! No marks for guessing why!

LIC of India has 115 Divisional Offices, 8 Zonal Offices, 9 Audit Centres, MDC and Central Office, as per the RTI replies. The total number of resigning employees whose arrears have been repudiated, since 1997 will be in thousands, and the total repudiated amount since 1997 will surely amount to crores of rupees.

The Corporation has refused to answer my RTI queries for details regarding the names, addresses, phone numbers and number of employees who have been denied the arrears payments and difference in retirement and other benefits due to them, as also the actual amount repudiated. The Central Office has given a list of 40 resigning employees, for 2010; and given an affidavit dated 4^th April, 2014, that no other information apart from that given to me in response to my RTI queries, is on its records.

     Interestingly, it refuses to part with this vital information on the grounds that it does not have this information in a centralized form in its Central Office. This is not true as all the information is sent by all the subsidiary offices of the Corporation to its Central Corporate Office in Mumbai regularly on a monthly basis. The Corporation’s Central Office compiles, consolidates and prepares the Final Trial Balance, Balance sheet and other Accounting Statements on a monthly, quarterly and yearly basis and annually presents the same in the Parliament as it is a Public Sector Organization.

     The Central Office server in its I.T. Department has the entire record of all the employees, (in the form of ‘Employee Masters’) of the Corporation and the details of all the resigning employees of the Corporation are updated as and when they retire from service.

     The Corporation has a highly organized and computerized set-up and all its records are computerized, hence it is hard to believe that it cannot reply to those queries in my RTI Application which pertain to information about such employees who have been short-changed by it; and the mind-boggling amounts involved.

     The amounts repudiated haven’t even been accounted for, by the LIC of India in its books of accounts. Had these arrears payments been made, the Income-tax against these payments would have been sent to the Income-Tax Department. Thus this action of LIC of India has even led to a revenue loss to the Central Government exchequer. The Balance Sheet of LIC of India, a reputed Public Sector organization, will also not reflect the correct picture of its financial status.

      Interestingly, the Gazette notifications G.S.R. 824 (E), 825 (E), 826 (E), 2470 (E), issued by the Ministry of Finance, dated 8^th October, 2010; contain a point in their Explanatory Memorandum stating: “It is certified that no employee of the Life Insurance Corporation of India is likely to be affected adversely by the notification being given retrospective effect.”

     Besides, the Supreme Court has already passed a judgment asking the Corporation to pay such arrears to retired employees, in its 2007 judgment. Thus, wasn’t the Corporation guilty of Contempt of Court, if it still persisted in referring to the Finance Ministry for approval, subsequent Gazette notification with the same clause 3 1) b) regarding repudiation of arrears (send proviso of Para 3 of the Notification dated 21^st December 2005 is struck sown being ultra vires to the extent it deprives the petitioner and other similarly situated persons to get the benefit of revised pay scale with effect from 1^st August 2002 after applying the principle of severability. Supreme Court's decision- Petitioner VS GIC) and then issuing an official Circular dated 11^th October, 2010?

     The evasive and lackadaisical response of the Corporation shows that it lacks transparency in its dealings, its records are not maintained properly; it does not follow standard accounting procedures and fair HR practices.

     The Corporation is a trustee of trillions of public money. To its credit, it has been regularly making Claim payments to the beneficiaries of its insurance policies, and has the lowest ratio of claims repudiated, in the whole world. Why can’t it play fair with its resigning employees and pay them their dues, gracefully? Is it too much to ask for?

     Hence I request all those employees who have resigned from the Public Sector Insurance companies (LIC, GICs and LICHFL) and not been paid arrears and other retirement benefits and allied dues, to come forward, send their names, phone numbers, e-mail ids, addresses and employment particulars (in these companies), etc. to me; so that we can collectively fight for justice.  You may post your comments and details online on this blog.

     I had also started a thread of discussion - 'LIC of India repudiates wage arrears' payment'; on the website www.lawyersclubindia.com/Labour and Service law/Service. You may also post your feedback there.

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                                                                             Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan

SC directs WB government to pay Gratuity Arrears with Interest

 Source: Internet: https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2026/02/06/dearness-allowance-supreme-court-da-right/

Some Extracts:

Dearness Allowance is a Right, Not a Bounty; State cannot cite financial crunch to deny it: Supreme Court “The least that is expected of a State in a democracy is that it honours its obligations and commitments, arising from a legislation or judicial decisions, for such obligations are not discretionary in any way, shape or form.” 

Published on February 6, 2026 By Prachi Bhardwaj ...

Supreme Court: In a significant ruling on the rights of government employees, the Supreme Court has held that Dearness Allowance (DA) is a statutory and enforceable right, and not a discretionary benefit that a State can withhold citing financial constraints. The Bench of Sanjay Karol* and Prashant Kumar Mishra, JJ., made it clear that once Dearness Allowance becomes payable under the governing rules, the State is legally bound to release it, observing that denial of such dues directly impacts employees’ right to life and livelihood under Article 21 of the Constitution....

The Court emphasised that DA is not a bounty but a mechanism to protect employees from erosion of wages due to inflation. It explained that DA is not intended to provide complete neutralisation of price rise for all employees, except in the case of the lowest paid categories. “Its purpose is to offer partial compensation for increased living costs through a variable and flexible mechanism, usually linked to a cost-of-living index. This explains why DA is commonly structured on a sliding scale, rising alongside prices.” It further explained that since DA is directly linked to the loss of real wages caused by inflation, imposing a uniform rate across such disparate regions would defeat its very purpose. It would confer undue benefit on employees in lower-cost centres while seriously disadvantaging those employed in high-cost metropolitan areas....

Financial Constraint Not a Legal Defence to Deny DA 

While examining whether the State could deny payment of DA on the ground of financial burden, the Supreme Court firmly rejected the plea of paucity of funds as a defence against enforcement of a crystallised legal right. The State had argued that granting DA as claimed would impose a massive financial liability and adversely affect its fiscal stability. The Court found this submission legally untenable once the right itself stood recognised and held that “Constitutional duties cannot be evaded on the ground of paucity of funds.” The Court observed that: “Once a legal right has been established… irrespective of whether it pertains to salary, pension, gratuity or other statutory benefits, it is not within the realm of permissible actions for the State to refuse payment of the same on account of financial inability/paucity of funds.” It was, further, explained that once a legally enforceable right has been established, the defence of the State so as to its financial ability or rather inability has to be kept at bay. The only question that remains thereafter is, how such a right has to be enforced, and considering the nature of the right, at what rate i.e. in accordance with AICPI....

State Must Act as a Model Employer

In a strong observation on governance, the Court reminded the State of its constitutional responsibility: “The least that is expected of a State in a democracy is that it honours its obligations and commitments, arising from a legislation or judicial decisions, for such obligations are not discretionary in any way, shape or form.”...

The Court strongly observed that, “State must set an example for other employers in the country by behaving as a ‘model employer’. Such a position should not be difficult to attain given all the advantages that it has. Its power lies in the volume of employment, its sovereign/constitutional authority to tax, ability to borrow and manage public finances. In embodying the ‘model employer’ the State not only fulfils its obligation but also instils and maintains public confidence in the rule of law, governance and administration of justice. Leading by example, fulfilling its financial duties in times of fiscal strain, gives it the moral authority to wield the sword of law against private entities, should they not do so.”...

Supreme Court’s Directions on Payment of DA Arrears 

The Supreme Court upheld the employees’ entitlement to Dearness Allowance and ruled that the State cannot deny or indefinitely withhold DA once it is payable under the governing rules or resolutions. The plea of financial incapacity was rejected as insufficient in law. Hence, the Court directed the State to release the arrears for the time 2008-2019. 

Retired Employees Also Covered 

The Court clarified that employees who retired during the pendency of the litigation will also be entitled to the DA benefits under the judgment. 

High-Level Committee to Oversee DA Payments 

While recognising both the huge financial burden on the State and the employees’ right to receive their lawful dues, the Supreme Court chose a balanced, structured approach for implementation of its directions on DA. Instead of ordering an immediate lump-sum payout, the Court constituted a high-powered monitoring Committee to ensure phased and accountable compliance....

End of Extracts

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To, 

The Government of India and L.I.C of India

Wage Revisions are essentially based on the fact that wages have to keep pace with rising inflation. 

We must also get our Wage Revision Arrears along with Difference in Statutory Retirement Benefits like Provident Fund and Gratuity, as well as other perks arising due to wage revision, as we were on the Salary Rolls of the Corporation then. Even the SC has given its judgment in 2007 in this regard. But the Corporation 'conveniently' chooses to ignore it during every Charter for Wage Revision, indulging in "Willful Contempt of Court".

As L.I.C of India is a government owned enterprise, the Government of India is duty-bound to pay all our above-mentioned dues along with Compound Interest from the date on which Wage Revision was announced till the actual date of payment.

Quote from the SC judgment in the above-cited case: "Leading by example, fulfilling its financial duties in times of fiscal strain, gives it the moral authority to wield the sword of law against private entities, should they not do so.”...

Interestingly L.I.C of India is awash with funds but thoroughly lacking in ethics, conscience, will-power and responsibility towards all of us. 

Wake up LIC! Pay up ASAP. Before you divest your stake in the Corporation, or else the new stake-holders/share-holders/owners will have to pay up to clear the Balance Sheet and Books of Accounts!

We are only requesting for immediate payment of our legally rightful dues and not charity! 

We have all been waiting for nearly three decades!

Awaiting an immediate and positive response at least this year! 

Thanks.

Long-suffering, resigning, ex-employees of L.I.C of India

Four New Labour Codes of India to ensure social justice for all workers! 2025

 Extract courtesy: https://labour.gov.in/sites/default/files/pib2192463.pdf

Ministry of Labour & Employment Government Announces Implementation of Four Labour Codes to Simplify and Streamline Labour Laws 

Four Labour Codes Herald Transformational Change: Better Wages, Safety, Social Security & Enhanced Welfare for India’s Workforce Codes lay the foundation for a protected, future-ready workforce and resilient industries, boosting employment and driving labour reforms for Aatmanirbhar Bharat Code aligns India’s labour ecosystem with global standards, ensuring social justice for all workers

 Posted On: 21 NOV 2025 3:00PM by PIB Delhi 

In a historic decision, the Government of India has announced the implementation of the four Labour Codes - the Code on Wages, 2019, the Industrial Relations Code, 2020, the Code on Social Security, 2020 and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 with effect from 21st November 2025, rationalising 29 existing labour laws. By modernising labour regulations, enhancing workers' welfare and aligning the labour ecosystem with the evolving world of work, this landmark move lays the foundation for a future-ready workforce and stronger, resilient industries driving labour reforms for Aatmanirbhar Bharat. Many of India’s labour laws were framed in the pre-Independence and early post-Independence era (1930s–1950s), at a time when the economy and world of work were fundamentally different. While most major economies have updated and consolidated their labour regulations in recent decades, India continued to operate under fragmented, complex and in several parts outdated provisions spread across 29 Central labour laws. These restrictive frameworks struggled to keep pace with changing economic realities and evolving forms of employment, creating uncertainty and increasing compliance burden for both workers and industry. The implementation of the four Labour Codes addresses this long-pending need to move beyond colonial-era structures and align with modern global trends. Together, these Codes empower both workers and enterprises, building a workforce that is protected, productive and aligned with the evolving world of work — paving the way for a more resilient, competitive and self-reliant nation.

End of extract

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In the light of the above-mentioned new codes announced by the Government of India, we, the long-suffering resigning ex-employees of L.I.C of India, a premier life insurance organization owned by the Government of India; remind the Government that these codes are silent on the injustice being silently endured by all of us who have been deprived of our rightful arrears due on wage revision.

These new codes mention that the wages will have to be given in a time-bound manner to the employees.

The Hon'ble Supreme Court had pointed it out in its judgment that the Wage Revision Charter was delayed by the Corporation, every five years when they actually became due, so the employees were not at fault. So why were their arrears' payments repudiated, even though they were on salary rolls of the corporation on the date from which the arrears were meant to be given to all employees? 

The Supreme Court then declared the clause by which the repudiations were given effect to, as 'ultra vires' (unconstitutional), yet the Corporation continues to deliberately and maliciously include the same clause in every Charter (under different nomenclatures, to hide its crime of Contempt of Court), and the Government of India keeps ratifying the same (in willful disobedience of the Supreme Court's Judgment). Both these entities keep denying the arrears to resigning ex-employees who have worked hard and sincerely to contribute to the Corporation's substantial profits.

The Wage Revision Arrears and the Revised Gratuity and Provident Fund need to be paid to all resigning ex-employees from 1st August, 1997 to date. nearly three decades! 

We request the Corporation and the Government of India to undo this grave injustice and gracefully give us our dues with compound interest till the actual date of payment to us.

All the stake-holders of these 2 entities are requested to urge them to give the same to us ASAP.

Interestingly, this injustice is being meted out to not only the resigning ex-employees of L.I.C of India, but even to the resigning ex-employees of all the four Government-owned general insurance companies, L.I.C Mutual Fund, L.I.C Housing Finance as well; so this 'scam of illegal and unjust repudiation' has great ramifications for all stake-holders.

When all the above-mentioned, affected ex-employees get all their dues from their employers, that would be a truly historic moment, worth cheering!

Vigilance Week in L.I.C of India 2025 - Kindly Walk The Talk, L.I.C of India!

  In its message to all the policy-holders regarding observance of Vigilance Week, L.I.C of India states its commitment to ethics. It asks everyone to fight for rooting out corruption and take a pledge to that effect.

We, the long-suffering, resigning ex-employees of L.I.C of India request the Managing Board of Directors to take the same pledge more vigorously this year, as each year passes by without us even hearing (leave alone actually receiving) about payment of our arrears' dues which the Corporation has maliciously, illegally and unjustly repudiated!

NOT PAYING OUR LEGALLY RIGHTFUL DUES, IS CORRUPTION. IN CASE L.I.C OF INDIA DOESN'T KNOW!

EVEN NOT ACCOUNTING FOR THE REPUDIATED AMOUNTS, IS CORRUPTION AND A MALPRACTICE OF THE HIGHEST ORDER.

THUS THE CORPORATION AND  THE GOVERNMENT MUST INDULGE IN SOME SERIOUS SOUL-SEARCHING AND TAKE EFFECTIVE STEPS TO STEM THE ROT...

Hopefully then, in the forthcoming Charters this humiliation won't be imposed on the hapless resigning employees!

    In my opinion, it is not enough to just profess the COMMITMENT TO ETHICS without actually practising it. In the course of my RTI struggle to obtain information from LIC, it was amply proved that LIC has no ethics as far as its responsibility towards its resigning ex-employees is concerned.  Consider the following points:

 LIC didn't bother to reply to my registered letter for representation of my case for arrears payments, nor to my subsequent 22 emails sent for follow-up thereafter; for eight months!

LIC's CPIO(WZO) called me up on my mobile from the office number and intimidated me so that I could back off from my RTI case. He  also requested me to treat his call as "off the record". He mocked me and challenged me to file a case against LIC boasting that I would surely lose the case and that the RTI case would also be closed within 3 months.

He lied in front of the IC that he had never spoken with me, to which I retorted that he was lying. He was dumbfounded and the IC reprimanded him to be transparent in his dealings in future.

LIC expects us to approach courts for our legally rightful dues, despite a Supreme Court ruling that declares Clause 3 of the Charter to be ultra vires. This clause repudiates the arrears payable to the resigning employees.

LIC didn't answer a majority of the 21 questions in my RTI appeal. Only three questions were answered incompletely.

LIC hasn't posted my RTI details on its website as is mandated by law.

LIC has wilfully, arbitrarily and illegally deprived its resigning employees of their arrears payments and difference in retirement benefits' payments for nearly 3 decades (from 1997, to be precise!).

LIC is heartless towards its ex-employees who have served it loyally and sincerely.

LIC has avoided paying TDS to the Central Exchequer by repudiation of our wage revision arrears since two decades, thus causing the Exchequer a whopping loss of crores of rupees!

My sincere request to L.I.C of India is to examine which of the following qualities does it possess to proclaim itself as ethical in our case:

Empathy and Ethos
Trustworthiness
Honor and Honesty
Integrity
Core values, Consideration and Conscience
Soul

If even one of these is missing, it needs to do an urgent soul-searching exercise and walk the talk!
If it is indeed ethical and non-corrupt, it will immediately reimburse to all of us, our legally rightful dues

We have yet to receive our dues with interest. 1997 till date. Nearly 3 decades!

Esteemed stake-holders of L.I.C of India, please take serious note of this longstanding, vexed issue and press the Corporation and the Government for releasing all our dues to us, along with accrued interest till date. We'll be very grateful to you.

Where there is a will, there is definitely a way!

My RTI Second Appeal - Fallen On Deaf Ears? (An Excerpt)

 EXCERPT

The Life Insurance Corporation of India which is a trustee of billions of rupees of the policyholders does not deem it necessary to maintain transparency in its dealings. It does not provide a rationale to its decisions, which is very dangerous for a Public Authority of its stature, where millions of employees and policyholders are being governed by its decisions. It is not behaving in a responsible and accountable manner.

If it can get away with repudiating billions of rupees due to its resigning employees as arrears, since 1997; I shudder to think about what could happen to the policyholders’ insurance policies worth billions of rupees, in future? What is the guarantee that such a huge Reserve Fund is safe with such an insurer that makes decisions arbitrarily or doesn’t maintain its records meticulously?

I also pity the other employees and policyholders who must be facing the nightmare of not getting information under their RTI queries, from LIC of India.

 *********************************************************************************

VERY IMPORTANT

I have received the names of 45 employees (Class I Cadre) who were denied the arrears’ payment by LIC of India in this Charter dt. 2010; (5 pertaining to the WZO and 40 pertaining to the Central Office) through this RTI Application. This is incomplete information and the Corporation is unwilling to part with the statistics pertaining to the Corporation as a whole. But one can assume that approximately 25 employees of Class I cadre and 25 employees of the Class II Cadre have been denied the arrears’ payment in each Divisional Office of LIC of India.

According to the replies of the CPIOs and the FAAs of the Corporation, to my RTI query no. 3, LIC has 115 Divisional Offices, 8 Zonal Offices, 9 Audit Centres, Central Office and MDC spread all over India, thus there are 134 offices of LIC of India. Assuming that 6240 employees have been denied arrears’ payment in this Charter dt. 2010, and an equal no. of employees have been denied arrears’ payment in the Charters dated 2000 and 2005; approximately18720 employees have been denied arrears’ payment.

If each of these employees was supposed to have got Rs. 4,00.000/- the amount repudiated totally works out to a staggering Rs.74,88,000,000/-. (This is a very conservative estimate. The actual amount may be higher, depending on the actual number of resigning employees who have been denied arrears payment and difference in Retirement Benefits; and the revised wages of the resigning employees in the Higher Management Cadres of LIC of India.)

Where has all this money gone and how has it been accounted for in LIC of India’s Financial Statements? Has it even been accounted for, at all, by LIC of India, considering the fact that it does not have records of repudiated amounts due to its resigning employees as per its own admission, in reply to my RTI queries?

No wonder, Sri K. Rajivan Nair, Regional Manager, (CRM/CPIO) WZO, LIC of India, told me in his SELF-PROFESSED “OFF THE RECORD” phone call to me, FROM THE ZONAL OFFICE LANDLINE NUMBER on 30-03-2012, that “ASKING FOR ANSWERS FROM LIC IS LIKE BREAKING YOUR HEAD AGAINST A WALL. LIC WILL NOT ANSWER ANY OF YOUR REMAINING QUESTIONS. WE DO NOT WANT TO OPEN A PANDORA’S BOX BY REPLYING TO YOUR QUESTIONS.”

END OF EXCERPT

Read the full text of my RTI Second Appeal in my blog dated 18th August, 2014.

Interestingly, the CPIO, Central Office, LIC of India, admitted in her written response to this appeal that there is no reason on LIC's records; to repudiate our wage revision arrears!

So LIC's decision to repudiate our wage revision arrears is arbitrary! Not acceptable for an organization of LIC's stature!

In fact, not acceptable for any other enterprise too! 

Employees are assets and not disposable commodities. 

If there is no rationale for repudiation, why have the arrears been repudiated? Wages are our constitutional rights. Pay up, LIC of India. PRONTO.

Betrayal of ex-employees by L.I.C of India - Has L.I.C of India ever heard of International Labor Day?

                                                       Shocking but true!

             
                   L.I.C of India betrays its resigning employees’ Good Faith!

It repudiates Arrears’ payment and difference in Retirement dues to its resigning employees.

   
      The Life Insurance Corporation of India, the number one life insurer in the whole world, has not paid arrears of wage payments and arrears of difference payable under Statutory retirement benefits like Provident Fund and Gratuity, due to its resigning employees; since the 1^st of August 1997, as revealed by answers to my RTI application. Revision of the wage bill in the Corporation is done after a period of every five years, but the notification is invariably delayed and the arrears are always paid after a gap of three years after they are actually due.

      The Board of Directors of LIC of India has taken the decision to repudiate the arrears and sent it to the Finance Ministry for approval, though it is a purely administrative decision and not a policy decision. Only policy decisions involving public interest need to be referred to the Finance Ministry. The decision of the Finance Ministry also needs to be analyzed as to why it approved the Corporation’s decisions without due consideration of their legality and Court Judgments on the issue.

     The Corporation has adopted a strategy of depriving its voluntarily resigning employees, that is those who are retiring before twenty years of service, of their legitimate dues by simply resorting to announcement of the notification after inclusion of a clause in a Gazette notified by the Finance Ministry of India, that such employees will not be eligible for payment of arrears. This effectively means that even if a resigning employee has been in service, that is, on roll of the Corporation on the date from which the arrears were effective, he/she will not be eligible to get arrears’ payment. This is illegal as wages are rights of an employee, according to our Indian Constitution and Labor Laws.

For instance, I had resigned after 18.5 years of service on 2^nd July 2010 and the notification for payment of arrears due from 1^st August 2007 was announced on 11th October, 2010. Legally, I was entitled to the arrears of difference in my wages from 1^st August 2007 to 2^nd July 2010 but it was denied on the basis of this Gazette and subsequent Circular’s notification by the Corporation.

     Similarly, the Provident Fund and Gratuity being Statutory retirement benefits, their difference will also have to be paid as per the revised, enhanced wages. All the allowances, perks, etc. would also have to be calculated accordingly and the difference would have to be paid to that resigning employee.

The Corporation wrongly differentiates between the two classes of voluntarily resigning employees as those who have completed 20 years of service and those who have resigned before completing 20 years of service. The first class is entitled to the Wage Revision Arrears’ Payments and the second class isn’t entitled to it! Since the wage revisions were announced for all the employees of the Corporation, as a class, the Corporation should not deny the benefits to the resigning employees.

Besides, the Minutes of the Corporation’s Board Meeting with points regarding recommendations made to the Finance Ministry, for repudiation of arrears and retirement benefits; have not been given to me as they are not available with the Corporation! There is also no rationale on record; of this decision by the Corporation, as revealed by the replies received from the Corporation, in response to the RTI Application made by me; to L.I.C of India.

 The Corporation has also replied that the Central Government takes this decision to repudiate arrears’ payments and hence it has repudiated arrears’ and other allied retirement benefits. 

In fact, it is the Managing Board of Directors of LIC of India, which takes this decision.

LIC of India has 115 Divisional Offices, 8 Zonal Offices, 9 Audit Centres, MDC and Central Office, as per the RTI replies. The total number of resigning employees whose arrears have been repudiated, since 1997 will be in thousands, and the total repudiated amount since 1997 will surely amount to crores of rupees.

The Corporation has refused to answer my RTI queries for details regarding the names, addresses, phone numbers and number of employees who have been denied the arrears payments and difference in retirement and other benefits due to them, as also the actual amount repudiated. The Central Office has given a list of 40 resigning employees, for 2010; and given an affidavit dated 4^th April, 2014, that no other information apart from that given to me in response to my RTI queries, is on its records.

     Interestingly, it refuses to part with this vital information on the grounds that it does not have this information in a centralized form in its Central Office. This is not true as all the information is sent by all the subsidiary offices of the Corporation to its Central Corporate Office in Mumbai regularly on a monthly basis. The Corporation’s Central Office compiles, consolidates and prepares the Final Trial Balance, Balance sheet and other Accounting Statements on a monthly, quarterly and yearly basis and annually presents the same in the Parliament as it is a Public Sector Organization.

     The Central Office server in its I.T. Department has the entire record of all the employees, (in the form of ‘Employee Masters’) of the Corporation and the details of all the resigning employees of the Corporation are updated as and when they retire from service.

     The Corporation has a highly organized and computerized set-up and all its records are computerized, hence it is hard to believe that it cannot reply to those queries in my RTI Application which pertain to information about such employees who have been short-changed by it; and the mind-boggling amounts involved.

     The amounts repudiated haven’t even been accounted for, by the LIC of India in its books of accounts. Had these arrears payments been made, the Income-tax against these payments would have been sent to the Income-Tax Department. Thus this action of LIC of India has even led to a revenue loss to the Central Government exchequer. The Balance Sheet of LIC of India, a reputed Public Sector organization, will also not reflect the correct picture of its financial status.

      Interestingly, the Gazette notifications G.S.R. 824 (E), 825 (E), 826 (E), 2470 (E), issued by the Ministry of Finance, dated 8^th October, 2010; contain a point in their Explanatory Memorandum stating: “It is certified that no employee of the Life Insurance Corporation of India is likely to be affected adversely by the notification being given retrospective effect.”

     Besides, the Supreme Court has already passed a judgment asking the Corporation to pay such arrears to retired employees, in its 2007 judgment. Thus, wasn’t the Corporation guilty of Contempt of Court, if it still persisted in referring to the Finance Ministry for approval, subsequent Gazette notification with the same clause 3 1) b) regarding repudiation of arrears (send proviso of Para 3 of the Notification dated 21^st December 2005 is struck sown being ultra vires to the extent it deprives the petitioner and other similarly situated persons to get the benefit of revised pay scale with effect from 1^st August 2002 after applying the principle of severability. Supreme Court's decision- Petitioner VS GIC) and then issuing an official Circular dated 11^th October, 2010?

     The evasive and lackadaisical response of the Corporation shows that it lacks transparency in its dealings, its records are not maintained properly; it does not follow standard accounting procedures and fair HR practices.

     The Corporation is a trustee of trillions of public money. To its credit, it has been regularly making Claim payments to the beneficiaries of its insurance policies, and has the lowest ratio of claims repudiated, in the whole world. Why can’t it play fair with its resigning employees and pay them their dues, gracefully? Is it too much to ask for?

     Hence I request all those employees who have resigned from the Public Sector Insurance companies (LIC, GICs and LICHFL) and not been paid arrears and other retirement benefits and allied dues, to come forward, send their names, phone numbers, e-mail ids, addresses and employment particulars (in these companies), etc. to me; so that we can collectively fight for justice.  You may post your comments and details online on this blog.

     I had also started a thread of discussion - 'LIC of India repudiates wage arrears' payment'; on the website www.lawyersclubindia.com/Labour and Service law/Service. You may also post your feedback there.

***********************************************************************************

                                                                             Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan

Drawing Competition 20th April 2025 Priya's Vision Academy

 PRIYA'S VISION ACADEMY 

      Drawing Competition 

Have fun with colors and unity!

Details:

Date: 20th April, 2025

Timings: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Age group: 5 to 16 years

Entry fees: Rs.150 only

10 to 10.30 Registration

10.30 to 11 Briefing

11 to 12 Competition 

12 to 12.30 Adjudgment

12.30 to 1 Prize giving and photo session. 

3 groups will be formed :

Age group 5 to 8 years

                  9 to 12 years

                13 to 16 years

As it's an on -the- spot contest, 

3 topics will be given for each age group.

The child must select any one and make the drawing. 

A4 size paper, pencil, eraser, ball point pen, sharpener, ruler  and drawing materials of the children's choice should be brought to the venue along with a mat for sitting, handkerchief,  water bottle, cup for water if using water colours, palette and a rag for wiping the brushes.

Rs.150 will be collected from each participant as an entry fee before the contest. 

Memento and certificate will be given to all participants.

3 prizes will be awarded in each category.

The judge's decision  will be final and binding.

The photos of the event will be posted on our blog at 

uniquepriya's vision. blogspot.com and our FB page and LinkedIn. 

The participants will be given further instructions at the venue.

Thanks.

The venue for the drawing competition to be held by Priya's Vision Academy on 20th of April, 2025 is the address given below:

Office no.5, Block no.1, Llyods Chambers,

Maldhakka Chowk,

Next to Sinchan Bhuvan, 

Pune 411011

See you soon then...

Priya's Vision Academy- Makes your life blossom.

Happy Women's Day! When will L.I.C of India and the Government of India walk the talk?

            The topmost echelons of the management of L.I.C of India consist of many women. Unfortunately, while they are apparently interested in women's empowerment, (rather, just talking about it!) their actions belie their attitude. There are some who deliver powerful lectures on women's empowerment but when it comes to actually walking the talk, develop cold feet and coolly look the other way!

          

          My tryst with the R.T.I appeal to the organization for getting my arrears and answers to queries; proved the above-mentioned sad truth. If I'd have got all my answers, I'd have also felt empowered, but alas, these ladies have forgotten the very meaning of empowerment, by choosing to be the Devil's Advocate (literally)!
          

          True empowerment can be attained only by supporting others. If ladies deprive other ladies (and men!) of their legally rightful dues and also justify it, it's a matter of concern and shame. Surely, they can use their own sense of judgment, reasoning and logic to make the men in their team aware of their flawed and unjust decisions instead of towing their line and trying to save their jobs and maintaining the status quo!
          

          These ladies have not shown the slightest bit of support to the cause of the resigning employees; arbitrarily and unjustly not being given their arrears and difference in retirement benefits, by the management.

           Interestingly, my letter regarding this injustice to the Finance Minister of India, Mrs. Nirmala Sitharaman's Office was met with a stony silence. Ditto, the Prime Minister and his Office! Whom should we approach now? Courts? When the Supreme Court has already declared the 3 1 B Clause which repudiates wage revision arrears to be ultra vires? PIL? Of course.

          So one can just conclude that women can be women's best friends and worst foes too!

          Once we get all our dues from the Corporation, I will be filling the form for Deha-daan (body-donation). That is my vow. 

          In case of my earlier demise, my family will be donating my body/organs to my chosen hospital.

                                                                              ******

           While euphorically celebrating Women's Day today in all offices of L.I.C of India, government offices and private offices, institutions, etc. let's not forget the immense contribution of all ladies who strive to make better lives for themselves and their beloved ones, brave many a storm and emerge victorious. Here's to Stree Shakti in all its forms! More power to you and may you always go from strength to strength.

           My dear long-suffering friends,

                       Rest assured, we will soon get our dues along with compound interest from L.I.C of                         India. I can feel it in my bones! Just keep the JOSH high!

                                                                                                                             Priya

Can L.I.C of India talk about "Trust"? - L.I.C Day, 2024

  The Insurance Week will undoubtedly be celebrated with great gusto by everyone in L.I.C. of India. 

  Its ad in the TOI dated 1st September, 2024 states that it is proudly rejoicing its 68th Anniversary. 

   The ad further states that:

"On our 68th Anniversary, we celebrate trusting relationships together, wherein we secure joy during your lifelong journey."

          May we remind the Corporation that it has been royally betraying the resigning ex-employees' trust since 1st August, 1997 with the same flourish! Repudiated our arrears and left us in the lurch!

          Does the Corporation even know the meaning of the word "TRUST'?

         The tagline below the LIC logo reads as "Har Pal Aapke Saath".

         Well, that remains true for us too as its massive betrayal is always with us, each second of our lives. Now that we are "Out of sight and out of mind" for LIC! Even out of its Books of Accounts.

         LIC has gleefully and perversely robbed us of all our joy. 

        While the assets amounting to a whopping Rs. 31.11 lakh crores and even more, are a feather in its cap, what about L.I.C's liabilities? 

          Most importantly, what about the liability that L.I.C. of India has towards its resigning ex-employees, whose arrears of wage revision and accruing retirement benefits' difference; have been callously and illegally repudiated by it, (deliberately ignoring a Supreme Court Judgment!), for nearly three decades, since 1997; to be precise?

          This Insurance Week will be really 'happy' for us and worth celebrating doubly, if all of us who have been wilfully wronged by the Corporation; get all our long outstanding dues with compound interest as per prevailing rates! 

          After all, we have equally contributed towards the Corporation's success!

   

          Our torturous journey of a thousand miles is still ongoing... and will continue till we reach our destination where we will get our rightful dues from L.I.C of India. 

                      (We sincerely hope and pray that all of us live to see that DAY!)

We hope that the Managing Board of Directors of L.I.C. of India, the Finance Minister and the Prime Minister are listening!

LIC's Height of Impudence! And Height of Government's Apathy!

 Source: https://www.staffnews.in/2021/04/lic-of-india-class-i-officers-revision-of-terms-and-conditions-of-service-amendment-rules-2021.html

LIC of India Class I Officers’ (Revision of Terms and Conditions of Service) Amendment Rules, 2021

MINISTRY OF FINANCE
(Department of Financial Services)

NOTIFICATION
New Delhi, the 15th April, 2021

G.S.R. 268(E).-In exercise of the powers conferred by section 48 of the Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956 (31 of 1956), the Central Government hereby makes the following rules further to amend the Life Insurance Corporation of India Class I Officers ‘ (Revision of Terms and Conditions of Service) Rules, 1985, namely:-

1. (1) These rules may be called the Life Insurance Corporation of India Class I Officers’ (Revision of Terms and Conditions of Service) Amendment Rules, 2021.

(2) They shall be deemed to have come into force on the 1st day of August, 2017.

(3) These rules shall be applicable to those Class I Officers who were in the whole-time salaried service in the permanent establishment of the Corporation on or after the 1st August, 2017:

Provided that where any Class I Officer gives a notice in writing to the Corporation, within a period as specified by the Corporation, expressing his option to be governed by the provisions of these rules with effect from a date which is not earlier than 1st August, 2017 and not later than the date of publication of this notification in the Official Gazette, then the Corporation may, by order, permit such Officer to be governed by these rules with effect from the said date and no arrears for the period prior to the date so opted shall be payable to such officer:

Provided further that an officer whose resignation had been accepted or whose services had been terminated under rule 39 of Life Insurance Corporation of India (Staff) Rules, 1960 during the period from 1st August, 2017 to the date of publication of this notification in the Official Gazette, shall not be eligible for the arrears on account of revision under these rules.

***********************

Even after apprising both, the Hon'ble Prime Minister of India and Finance Minister of India, about LIC of India's illegal and unconstitutional actions whereby the Corporation openly loots its resigning ex-employees' wage revision arrears and other allied benefits like difference in Statutory Retirement Benefits viz. Provident Fund and Gratuity; it's shocking to note how brazenly the Corporation continues with its misdeeds. The evidence is the latest Charter of 2021, as posted above. 

The same Clause 3 which has been declared as 'ultra vires' by the Supreme Court has been included here again. The Corporation thinks that it can hoodwink everyone by just removing the alphabet B/b or numerical ii) from Clause 3. Does it think that all of us (including the Hon'ble SC) are morons? The wordings are the same and even a child can see through the Corporation's evil intentions! 

We request the Hon'ble Supreme Court to pull up everyone involved in this sordid saga that has been continuing for nearly three decades. A clear case of 'Contempt of Court'. For the uninformed, the Corporation has been repudiating the resigning, ex-employees' arrears and other allied dues since 1st August, 1997, through the same Clause 3.

Obviously, the Government lacks the will to set things straight. Strange, considering how the Hon'ble Prime Minister keeps repeating "Modi Ki Guarantee" for solving every problematic issue in this country, but doesn't guarantee reimbursement of our dues with interest! His 'magic wand' doesn't consider our long-pending issue as worthy of a swish (over)!

But no worries! We have God's Supreme Guarantee which will eventually turn the tide in our favour.

                                                             SATYAMEVA JAYATE!

My third letter to the Hon'ble Prime Minister of India regarding unjust LIC of India

 My third letter to the Hon'ble Prime Minister of India regarding unjust LIC of India

 To,                                                                         

                                                                                                                              Dec 15, 2023, 3:35 PM (4 days ago)

The Hon'ble Prime Minister of India,

Sri Narendra Modiji

Respected Sir,

                         

Sub.: Wage Revision Arrears – Repudiation by L.I.C of India

Ref. The letter received from L.I.C of India today, by me.

                                 My letters to you dated 18th June 2023 and 4th August, 2023

                        It's downright shameful that a respectable (?) public insurer like the Life Insurance Corporation of India has the cheek to give me the same reply that was given to me in 2010 when I had appealed to it asking for a reply to why my wages were repudiated despite beng on the rolls of its service in 2007. 

                        My wages had been repudiated from 1st August, 2007 to 2nd July 2010.

                        The said clause 3 i has been declared 'ultra vires' (unconstitutional) by the Supreme Court in 2007. The Management of the Corporation had even stated in the reply to my RTI Appeal that the Central Government takes the decision to repudiate the arrears whereas actually the Management of LIC of India takes this obnoxious and illegal decision and sends it for ratification to the Parliament. Even the CIC agreed, after I presented my case, that the Government was just ratifying the decision taken by LIC's Management.

                        What's even more shocking is that it has been persisting with its illegal act with the full support of the Government of India, since 1997. As you're aware, a Gazette Notification is published as a Charter of Wage Revision, by the Government of India.

                        "Justice delayed is justice denied" as the old adage goes. Will we, the long suffering, resigning ex-employees of the Corporation ever get justice with this pathetic state of affairs of a state-owned insurer of LIC of India's stature? An esteemed Corporation with an IPO, which even lies to the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister of the nation?

                       As I had informed you through my first letter, my husband needs long-term or even life-long treatment for his ailment and is currently under observation after a major surgery. I need finances to look after his and my health. I am only asking for my hard-earned dues, not even charity. 

                      Besides, the Corporation has wilfully defrauded the exchequer of crores of rupees as the income-tax which would have been payable to it after payment of arrears to us, and could have been charged to us; has been avoided by the Corporation for 26 years!

                      Importantly, the amounts of wage revision arrears payable to all of us have not been shown in the Balance Sheet of the Corporation at all, as liabilities. So the Balance Sheet and Financial Statements are in fact, erroneous. This is a serious lapse on the Corporation's and the Government's part as the Corporation has been listed on the stock exchange. Even the sister concerns of the Corporation, like the 4 general insurance companies, LIC Mutual Funds and LIC Housing Finance follow the same route of repudiation citing the corresponding clause in their respective wage revision charters. If this isn't a financial fraud (read scam!) of huge ramifications, (with potentially serious repercussions in future), what is? 

                      In your capacity as the Head of State, I request you to kindly urge the Corporation to immediately give you answers with all the details of the 21 questions that I had put forth to it, through my RTI appeal in 2011.

                      I am including the same as a post-script here, alongwith an extract of the Hon'ble Supreme Court's judgment.

                      I request you to direct the Corporation to pay all my dues as well as those of others, immediately with compound interest till date.

                      Kindly do the needful at the earliest and oblige.

                      Thanking you,

                                                                                                                      Yours sincerely,

                                                                                                                      Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan

P.S. The Government could just take the advice of its esteemed legal advisors and immediately sort out this long-outstanding issue to avoid any questions by LIC's investors in future.

                        

My Blog:

 

L.I.C of India betrays its resigning employees’ Good Faith!

 

                                                   Shocking but true!

             
           L.I.C of India betrays its resigning employees’ Good Faith!

It repudiates Arrears’ payment and difference in Retirement dues to its resigning employees.

   
      The Life Insurance Corporation of India, the number one life insurer in the whole world, has not paid arrears of wage payments and arrears of difference payable under Statutory retirement benefits like Provident Fund and Gratuity, due to its resigning employees; since the 1^st of August 1997, as revealed by answers to my RTI application. Revision of the wage bill in the Corporation is done after a period of every five years, but the notification is invariably delayed and the arrears are always paid after a gap of three years after they are actually due.

      The Board of Directors of LIC of India has taken the decision to repudiate the arrears and sent it to the Finance Ministry for approval, though it is a purely administrative decision and not a policy decision. Only policy decisions involving public interest need to be referred to the Finance Ministry. The decision of the Finance Ministry also needs to be analyzed as to why it approved the Corporation’s decisions without due consideration of their legality and Court Judgments on the issue.

     The Corporation has adopted a strategy of depriving its voluntarily resigning employees, that is those who are retiring before twenty years of service, of their legitimate dues by simply resorting to announcement of the notification after inclusion of a clause in a Gazette notified by the Finance Ministry of India, that such employees will not be eligible for payment of arrears. This effectively means that even if a resigning employee has been in service, that is, on roll of the Corporation on the date from which the arrears were effective, he/she will not be eligible to get arrears’ payment. This is illegal as wages are rights of an employee, according to our Indian Constitution and Labor Laws.

For instance, I had resigned after 18.5 years of service on 2^nd July 2010 and the notification for payment of arrears due from 1^st August 2007 was announced on 11th October, 2010. Legally, I was entitled to the arrears of difference in my wages from 1^st August 2007 to 2^nd July 2010 but it was denied on the basis of this Gazette and subsequent Circular’s notification by the Corporation.

     Similarly, the Provident Fund and Gratuity being Statutory retirement benefits, their difference will also have to be paid as per the revised, enhanced wages. All the allowances, perks, etc. would also have to be calculated accordingly and the difference would have to be paid to that resigning employee.

The Corporation wrongly differentiates between the two classes of voluntarily resigning employees as those who have completed 20 years of service and those who have resigned before completing 20 years of service. The first class is entitled to the Wage Revision Arrears’ Payments and the second class isn’t entitled to it! Since the wage revisions were announced for all the employees of the Corporation, as a class, the Corporation should not deny the benefits to the resigning employees.

Besides, the Minutes of the Corporation’s Board Meeting with points regarding recommendations made to the Finance Ministry, for repudiation of arrears and retirement benefits; have not been given to me as they are not available with the Corporation! There is also no rationale on record; of this decision by the Corporation, as revealed by the replies received from the Corporation, in response to the RTI Application made by me; to L.I.C of India.

 The Corporation has also replied that the Central Government takes this decision to repudiate arrears’ payments and hence it has repudiated arrears’ and other allied retirement benefits. In fact, it is the Managing Board of Directors of LIC of India, which takes this decision.

LIC of India has 115 Divisional Offices, 8 Zonal Offices, 9 Audit Centres, MDC and Central Office, as per the RTI replies. The total number of resigning employees whose arrears have been repudiated, since 1997 will be in thousands, and the total repudiated amount since 1997 will surely amount to crores of rupees.

The Corporation has refused to answer my RTI queries for details regarding the names, addresses, phone numbers and number of employees who have been denied the arrears payments and difference in retirement and other benefits due to them, as also the actual amount repudiated. The Central Office has given a list of 40 resigning employees, for 2010; and given an affidavit dated 4^th April, 2014, that no other information apart from that given to me in response to my RTI queries, is on its records.

     Interestingly, it refuses to part with this vital information on the grounds that it does not have this information in a centralized form in its Central Office. This is not true as all the information is sent by all the subsidiary offices of the Corporation to its Central Corporate Office in Mumbai regularly on a monthly basis. The Corporation’s Central Office compiles, consolidates and prepares the Final Trial Balance, Balance sheet and other Accounting Statements on a monthly, quarterly and yearly basis and annually presents the same in the Parliament as it is a Public Sector Organization.

     The Central Office server in its I.T. Department has the entire record of all the employees, (in the form of ‘Employee Masters’) of the Corporation and the details of all the resigning employees of the Corporation are updated as and when they retire from service.

     The Corporation has a highly organized and computerized set-up and all its records are computerized, hence it is hard to believe that it cannot reply to those queries in my RTI Application which pertain to information about such employees who have been short-changed by it; and the mind-boggling amounts involved.

     The amounts repudiated haven’t even been accounted for, by the LIC of India in its books of accounts. Had these arrears payments been made, the Income-tax against these payments would have been sent to the Income-Tax Department. Thus this action of LIC of India has even led to a revenue loss to the Central Government exchequer. The Balance Sheet of LIC of India, a reputed Public Sector organization, will also not reflect the correct picture of its financial status.

      Interestingly, the Gazette notifications G.S.R. 824 (E), 825 (E), 826 (E), 2470 (E), issued by the Ministry of Finance, dated 8^th October, 2010; contain a point in their Explanatory Memorandum stating: “It is certified that no employee of the Life Insurance Corporation of India is likely to be affected adversely by the notification being given retrospective effect.”

     Besides, the Supreme Court has already passed a judgment asking the Corporation to pay such arrears to retired employees, in its 2008 judgment. Thus, wasn’t the Corporation guilty of Contempt of Court, if it still persisted in referring to the Finance Ministry for approval, subsequent Gazette notification with the same clause 3 1) b) regarding repudiation of arrears (send proviso of Para 3 of the Notification dated 21^st December 2005 is struck sown being ultra vires to the extent it deprives the petitioner and other similarly situated persons to get the benefit of revised pay scale with effect from 1^st August 2002 after applying the principle of severability. Supreme Court's decision- Petitioner VS GIC) and then issuing an official Circular dated 11^th October, 2010?

     The evasive and lackadaisical response of the Corporation shows that it lacks transparency in its dealings, its records are not maintained properly; it does not follow standard accounting procedures and fair HR practices.

     The Corporation is a trustee of trillions of public money. To its credit, it has been regularly making Claim payments to the beneficiaries of its insurance policies, and has the lowest ratio of claims repudiated, in the whole world. Why can’t it play fair with its resigning employees and pay them their dues, gracefully? Is it too much to ask for?

     Hence I request all those employees who have resigned from the Public Sector Insurance companies (LIC, GICs and LICHFL) and not been paid arrears and other retirement benefits and allied dues, to come forward, send their names, phone numbers, e-mail ids, addresses and employment particulars (in these companies), etc. to me; so that we can collectively fight for justice.  You may post your comments and details online on this blog.
     I have also started a new thread of discussion- 'LIC of India repudiates wage arrears' payment'; on the website www.lawyersclubindia.com/Labour and Service law/Service. You may also post your feedback there.

                                                                             Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan

The copyright of this write-up is with Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan.

SUNDAY 11 MAY 2014

My R.T.I. queries to L.I.C. of India

 

1.      What is the official reason, because of which my arrears payment and difference in retirement benefits were repudiated during Wage Revision payment in the latest Wage Revision Charter dated 11^th October, 2010?

2.      Kindly provide me a copy of the gazette and official notification, along with information about which specific provisions of the gazette and official notification justify or state that I should not be given the arrears due w.e.f August 2007?

3.      Please furnish me a copy of Names, Addresses, Telephone/Mobile nos., Branch Nos., Branch addresses, D.O. Nos. and D.O. addresses of all the employees of LIC of India, who were denied arrears’ payment under the Charter dated 11^th October, 2010.

4.       Were any of the above employees paid the arrears amount by LIC of India?  If so, why, when and by whom? Names and other details as in (3) above, to be furnished. Documentary proof to be provided by LIC of India. 

5.      Is there any case filed by any such employee, whose arrears’ payment was repudiated by LIC of India, against LIC of India; in respect of any such Charter.  If so, details about the case—Name of the appellant, B.O. and D.O. addresses, residential and official address, telephone/mobile no., Charter Date (in respect of any such charter, including the latest one) and copy of the judgement.

6.      What was the outcome of the case as in (5) above?  Documentary proof to be provided by the LIC of India.

7.      No. of resigning employees all over India and the total amount repudiated (of arrears’ payment by LIC of India) with bifurcation in respect of each such employee; in the Charter dated 11^th October, 2010 applicable w.e.f August 2007.

8.      No. of employees, names, addresses, telephone/mobile nos. and amounts repudiated respectively (in respect of each one) under all the Charters of Wage Revisions (Previous 5 Charters, excluding the latest one) and their Branch Nos., Addresses of Branches, D.O. Nos., Addresses of D.O.s also to be provided.

9.      Since which year or which Charter has LIC of India started repudiating arrears’ payment legitimately due, to its resigning employees; and why?

10.  Details of the exact legal provisions and clauses on the bases of which LIC of India has arrived at its premise of refusing to pay Arrears’ payment and subsequent difference in retirement benefits to its resigning employees.

11.  Who takes this crucial decision to repudiate arrears’ payment to the employees?  The Government of India or LIC of India?  Details to be provided with documentary proof.

12.  The total no. of transactions effected under my S.R. No. 441595 from 1^st August, 2007 to 2^nd July, 2010, the last date of my service in LIC of India.

13.  Copy of the note or letter put up to the Chairman, LIC of India for the final decision regarding my resignation.

14.  Copy of the final approval of my resignation by LIC of India.

15.  Documents pertaining to the Board Meetings of LIC of India wherein this resolution to repudiate arrears of resigning employees; has been taken. Kindly provide Minutes of the Meetings with signatures of all the attending members.

16.  With reference to my representation letters dated 20-10-2010 (addressed to the Executive Director, Personnel, LIC of India) and 20-11-2010 (addressed to the Chairman, LIC of India), sent through Speed Post and subsequent e-mails dated 22-10-10, 26-10-10, 01-11-10, 08-11-10, 13-11-10, 16-11-10, 20-11-10, 27-11-10, 04-12-2010, 06-12-2010, 09-12-2010, 13-12-2010, 21-12-2010, 24-12-2010, 25-12-2010, 30-12-2010, 04-01-2011, 13-01-2011, 17-01-2011, 28-01-2011, 31-01-2011, 08-02-2011; why were they not replied to immediately?  Why was there an inordinate delay of 8 months for a single line unsatisfactory reply vide letter dated 14-03-2011, received by me on 07-06-2011, that too replied to; not by the addressees of my letters, but by the lower office (Pune Divisional Office No.1)?  Kindly provide an explanation letter.

17.  Copy of the LIC of India, Staff Regulations, 1960 and subsequent modifications/amendments therein, if any.

18.  Names, phone numbers and official addresses of the current Chairman, Officiating Chairman, Executive Directors, Managing Directors and Sr. Divisional Manager of Pune Divisional Office 1; LIC of India

19.  Please provide a list of applicants for Wage Revision arrears’ payments in respect of the Charter dated 11^th October, 2010 during the last 16 months, giving names, dates of application and dates on which replies were issued by LIC of India.

20.   What are the factors due to which the Wage Revision Charter is delayed inordinately, every time that it is legitimately due?

21.   a) Does the LIC of India, Staff Regulations, 1960 and subsequent modifications/amendments therein, if any, contain any clause wherein it is mentioned that arrears payment after Wage Revision due to a Charter notification, may be denied to an employee on roll of the LIC of India in the period for which the Charter has been announced?

              b) If so, kindly point out the requisite provision or clause with adequate, satisfactory explanation/rationale.

              c) Does this denial of arrears payment and difference in retirement benefits, agree in principle, with the labour laws applicable in India?

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The copyright of this write-up is with Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan.

 

TUESDAY 30 DECEMBER 2014

LIC Gazette Notification 2010 - Class II employees (Development Officers)

The same clause that applies for Class 1 Officers, which states that resigning employees are not eligible for arrears' payment, applies to Class II and Class III and IV of LIC and GIC employees too.

GIC comprises of 4 companies, New India Assurance, United India Assurance, National Insurance and Oriental Insurance Company. Besides, LICMF, GICHFL & LICHFL's employees would have also been affected by the same clause, which has been declared as ultra-vires by the Supreme Court in 2007. One can just imagine how many ex-employees, all together, in all these Life and Non-Life Public Sector insurance companies have been illegally deprived of their hard-earned dues! LIC has not divulged details regarding total number of ex-employees throughout the Corporation, since 1997, whose arrears have been repudiated and the amounts repudiated against each of their accounts, etc. in reply to my RTI application.

As even the Statutory Retirement benefits like Provident Fund and Gratuity would have been eligible for difference in payment as per revised rates, this repudiation, running to the tune of billions of rupees, is a scam of huge ramifications.

It is therefore very surprising that this issue has not been highlighted or debated about, anywhere in any print or electronic media, any time in the past, as per my knowledge, since 1997, when the first batch of payments to resigning ex-employees was repudiated.

I had sent the report contained in my first blog post to the Press Trust of India (Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai), The Times of India (Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai), Open Magazine, Mumbai Mirror (Their inbox was full, hence the message appeared as 'not delivered') and Youth Ki Aawaz portal. Not a single one of them replied back or acknowledged my e-mail, or got back to me for information, barring the Youth Ki Aawaz portal which also developed cold feet and refused to publish my report.

 

 

Salient rulings by the Supreme Court regarding the Wage Revision Charter

 

Consider this extract from a Supreme Court judgment, in 2007: 

SC - "Proviso of Para 3 is struck sown ultra vires"

 K. S. Raina.                                                                                       -      ------------Petitioner.

                        Versus

Union of India and others.                                                                         --------Respondents.

Coram:

The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Rajiv Sharma, Judge.

Whether approved for reporting?*                                    Yes.

For the Petitioner:                                                  Ms. Ranjana Parmar, Advocate.

For Respondent No. 1:                                         Ms. Shilpa Sood,

Central Government Counsel.

For Respondents No. 2 & 3:                                Mr. Ashwani Sharma, Advocate.

Rajiv Sharma, J.

 

It has come in the supplementary affidavit filed on behalf of respondent No. 2 that the wage revision of the employees of the nationalized insurance companies follows a periodicity of five years, i.e. 1^st August 1987, 1^st August 1992, 1^st August 1997 and 1^st August 2002. Thus, it is evident that in normal circumstances wage revision should have taken place in the year 2002 instead of 2005.

 

Classification made by the employer on the basis of seeking premature retirement on the basis of two sets of retirement schemes is not sustainable being irrational and discriminatory. 

 

The petitioner has a constitutional right to get his pay including the revision in the pay scale and it is settled law by law the fundamental rights can neither be waived off nor bartered away.

 

The action of the respondents is not supported by any rational basis or intelligible differentia.

In the present case the petitioner was in fact in employment as on 1^st August 2002, the date from which the Notification (Annexure P-4) dated 21^st December 2005 has been made applicable.

 

Consequently, in view of the observations made above, send proviso of Para 3 of the Notification dated 21^st December 2005 is struck sown being ultra vires to the extent it deprives the petitioner and other similarly situated persons to get the benefit of revised pay scale with effect from 1^st August 2002 after applying the principle of severability.

 

According, the petition is allowed. The petitioner is held entitled to get the revised pay scale corresponding to his post he was occupying as on 1^st August 2002 till 15^th March 2004. The respondents are directed to work out the arrears etc. within six weeks from today.

 

December 3, 2007                                                                                      (Rajiv Sharma), J.

****************************************************************************************************************************

 

Source: Supreme Court and High Court judgments relating to Insurance. 

                                                                                                

 

 Extract

 

An order passed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Civil Appeal No. 1289 of 2007 - Life Insurance Corporation of India and others v. Retirement L.I.C. Officers Association and others, decided on 12.2.2008

Revision of scales of pay as also other allowances is technical in nature. When a benefit is extended to a group of employees the effect of such benefit, if otherwise comes within the purview thereof must be held to be applicable to other groups of employees also. An employee is entitled to gratuity. It is not a bounty. It is payable on successful tenure of service. Regulation 77 provides as to how the amount of gratuity is to be calculated. Regulation 51 provides for a rule of measurement. Only because it employed the word “permanent basic pay”, the same will not itself lead to the conclusion that once an employee has retired, he would not be entitled to any revision of the amount of gratuity.

26. The Chairman of the Corporation has himself given a retrospective effect to revision in scales of pay. Such a retrospective effect has also been given so as to benefit a class of employees. The employees, irrespective of the fact whether they had superannuated or not, were given the benefit of arrears of pay from Ist August, 1993. By reason of grant of such benefit both to serving employees as also the superannuated employees, both the class of employees became entitled thereto as of right. If by reason thereof, even a retired employee, as on the date of retirement, became entitled to the benefit of the revised scale of pay, the same for all intent and purpose must be taken to be the permanent basic pay, apart from other allowances, if any, which are required to be taken into consideration for the purpose of computation of the amount of gratuity.”

Later, the Hon'ble Supreme Court found that fixation of cut off date by the Chairman of the Corporation is beyond the powers conferred upon him by the Statute.

In view of the aforesaid judgment, the present writ petition is allowed in the same terms as ordered by the Hon'ble Supreme Court, with directions to the respondents to grant the consequential benefits to the petitioners within a period of three months.

04-07-2008

ds

(HEMANT GUPTA)

JUDGE