2015 PLP 1254 (CLD)

SHAMS MEHMOOD MIRZA, J.

Through this writ petition, the petitioner, Postal Life Insurance, has challenged the assumption of jurisdiction by Insurance Tribunal, Lahore on the petition filed by respondent No.1 and order dated 8-4-2014 whereby the application filed by the petitioner under Order VII, Rule 11, C.P.C. was dismissed.

2. The facts of the case are simple and need not be elaborately stated. The legal question to be determined by this Court is whether the petitioner is amenable to the jurisdiction of the Insurance Tribunal. The brother of respondent No.1 brought an insurance policy bearing No.CL-(A)-03460-LHB dated 15-8-2005 from the petitioner. On his death, respondent No.1 lodged the insurance claim with the petitioner which was repudiated on 1-7-2010. This compelled respondent No.1 to file a petition before the Insurance Tribunal, Punjab, Lahore seeking redressal of his grievance. The petitioner on being summoned filed an application under Order VII, Rule 11, C.P.C. before the Insurance Tribunal, Punjab, Lahore for dismissal of the petition filed by respondent No.

1. The application filed by the petitioner was dismissed on 8-4-2014.

3. The core issue raised by the petitioner's counsel is that the petitioner being run by the Federal Government does not come within the jurisdiction of Insurance Tribunal in terms of section 171(1) of the Insurance Ordinance, 2000 (the Ordinance). It was further stated that by virtue of the Rules of Business, the petitioner is placed under the Ministry of Commerce and as such the Insurance Tribunal had no jurisdiction over it. It was also submitted that the petitioner is run under Post Office Insurance Fund Rules, 2000 and it is not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan. The learned counsel, for the petitioner also referred to the definition of "insurer" as mentioned in section 2(xxxi) of the Insurance Ordinance, 2000 to argue that the petitioner is neither a company nor a body corporate and as such does not fall within the jurisdiction of Insurance Tribunal.

4. Section 2 (xxxi) of the Insurance Tribunal Ordinance, 2000 defines "insurer" and reads as under:- "insurer" means (i) any company or other body corporate carrying on the business of insurance, which is a company or other body corporate incorporated under any law for the time being in force in Pakistan; and (ii) any body corporate incorporated under the law of any jurisdiction outside Pakistan carrying on insurance business which carries on that business in Pakistan. Section 171 of the Ordinance reads as under:-- Exemptions.

(1) Nothing in this Ordinance shall apply to any insurance business carried on by the Federal or by a Provincial Government. (2) For the purposes of this section, insurance business carried on by a body corporate shall not be deemed to be insurance business carried on by the Federal or by a Provincial Government by virtue only of the fact that the Federal or Provincial Government holds a controlling interest in the body corporate. The aforementioned provisions together with section 2(xiv) of the Ordinance show that any company incorporated under the Companies Ordinance, 1984 or a body corporate incorporated under any law carrying on the business of insurance comes within the purview and jurisdiction of the Insurance Tribunal.

5. Although section 171(1) of the Ordinance makes it clear that the provisions of the Ordinance shall not apply to any insurance business carried on by the Federal or by a Provincial Government, subsection (2) thereof creates an exception to the effect that the insurance business carried out by a body corporate even if controlled by Federal Government shall not be deemed to be insurance business carried out by Federal Government.

6. In regard to the question whether the petitioner is being run by the Federal Government and therefore, the jurisdiction of the Insurance Tribunal is ousted, the provisions of the Pakistan Postal Services Management Board Ordinance, 2002 (Ordinance No. CXXVI of 2002) are quite instructive and clearly bring out the fact that the petitioner falls squarely within the exception contained in sub section (2) of section 171 of the Ordinance. By virtue of section 3 of Ordinance No.CXXVI of 2002, Pakistan Postal Services Management Board (the Board) was created. In terms of section 3(2) thereof, the Board is a body corporate having perpetual succession, a common seal and has the power to acquire, hold and dispose of property and can sue and be sued in its own name. Section 11 of the said Ordinance enumerates the powers and functions of the said Board, which include the power to manage, maintain and operate the petitioner, Postal Life Insurance, throughout Pakistan.

7. It is thus clear that the insurance business of the petitioner is being run, managed and carried on by the Board, which is a body corporate having been established under Ordinance No.CXXVI of 2002. The petitioner thus falls in the exception created by section 171 (2) of the Ordinance. The fact that the petitioner is not registered with Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan does not in any manner effect or has a bearing on the jurisdiction of the Insurance Tribunal. By a combined reading of sections 2(xxxi) and 171(2) of the Ordinance read with sections 3 and 11 of the Ordinance No. CXXVI of 2002, the petitioner is amenable to the jurisdiction of the Insurance Tribunal.

8. The Insurance Tribunal thus rightly passed order dated 8-4-2014 dismissing the petitioner's application filed under Order VII, Rule 11, C.P.C. This writ petition being devoid of any merit is accordingly dismissed. KMZ/P-4/L Petition dismissed.