E-Paper
Late army officer’s kin in Rohtak denied insurance claim
Claim rejected by insurance company, saying it received relevant documents one day late
The Rohtak-based family of Lt Nitish Kakkar, who died in a road mishap in Bathinda two years ago, is still struggling to cope up with the loss of their only son but the rejection of the insurance claim over his death has now further upset the bereaved family.
Lt Kakkar, 26, who got commissioned into the 45 CAV Armoured Corps of the Indian Army in 2015, was killed on May 26 in the same year in an accident in Bathinda Cantonment area—the place of his posting.
However, the life insurance claim pertaining to the late army officer has been rejected on the ground that his documents were received by the company one day late.
“At first, Reliance General Insurance declined to process our claim saying we did not intimate them about our son’s death within 90 days. But when I showed them the receipt of their acceptance of our intimation, they changed their stance and said the payment was declined because the requisite documents had reached their office on the 181st day of Nitish’s death, and not within the stipulated period of 180 days,” Nitish’s father Jitender Arya said, adding that he had sent the documents on the 176th day.
HT called the insurance company multiple times, but got no response. The letter denying insurance claim to the family (in HT’s possession) cites delay of one day as violation of terms and conditions of the policy to reject the claim.
The family said their repeated requests to the army to intervene in helping them get insurance claim elicited no response.
The adjutant general of the Army also denied special family pension and ex-gratia lump-sum compensation to the bereaved family, despite the commanding officer of the unit recommending that Lt Kakkar was on bonafide military duty and his death is attributable to military service. Both the letters are in possession of HT .
“The authorities concerned have not told us why the family pension and ex gratia were rejected even when it was recommended by the officers of the ranks of major general,” Arya said.
Meanwhile, the family said, the police are yet to reach a logical conclusion about the death of their son. “The police investigation so far says that he was found in a pool of blood by the side of his bike on the highway. They have not been able to find out what happened and which vehicle(s) was involved in the accident,” he said.
Over the past two years, Lt Kakkar’s father has written to the officials of the state and central governments, and the sainik board, but has not received any help. “It is not about money. We can do without it. But it is humiliating to see officials’ behaviour,” he said.
