Chandigarh: Punjab and Haryana high court has allowed a mother’s appeal seeking her share of Army Group Insurance Fund (AGIF) death benefits of her son, a soldier who died while serving in an insurgency-hit area of Jammu & Kashmir in 2009. HC directed release of the remaining 25% of the benefits in her favour along with accrued interest.After Sepoy Harjinder Singh’s death on Aug 11, 2009, 50% of the AGIF benefits were released to his wife Hardeep Kaur. Another 25%, amounting to over Rs 3.7 lakh, was released to his father Tejpal Singh, but the remaining 25% was withheld due to a dispute between the soldier’s mother Baljit Kaur and wife. It was deposited under the SSD Scheme as a cumulative deposit in the name of AGIF for three years.Baljit Kaur instituted a suit seeking 50% of her son’s death benefits, contending that being his mother and a legal heir, she was entitled to her proportionate share under Hindu Succession Act.A Sangrur court dismissed her suit on March 10, 2014, and her appeal against the judgment was also dismissed on Jan 2, 2017. She challenged it in high court.Her counsel submitted that the 25% deposited with AGIF deserved to be released in her favour. Opposing the claim, AGIF counsel advocate Akshay Kumar Goel and Vishal Gupta for Union of India supported the earlier civil court judgments and submitted that the benefits had been released in accordance with rules and nominations and that the mother was not entitled to the relief.HC referred to Rule 39 of Army Group Insurance Scheme, which provides for sharing insurance benefits proportionately in accordance with the applicable law of succession. The rule says that in disputed cases between legal heirs, payment of insurance benefits will be made in accordance with the law of succession after obtaining approval of the Claims Committee of AGIF.Allowing the appeal, Justice Harkesh Manuja held that the mother’s claim for release of the remaining 25% of the benefits deserved to be accepted, as the widow had already received 50%.
