UCO Bank fined ₹15,000 for delay in revising widow’s family pension despite official instructions: Here’s what happened
The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in Chandigarh has directed UCO Bank to pay ₹15,000 in compensation to a widow for failing to revise her family pension despite receiving instructions from the disbursing authorities, according to a report by The Tribune.
The commission held the bank responsible for deficiency in service, noting that the delay caused the complainant hardship and mental harassment. It rejected the bank’s defence that it had subsequently cleared the pending arrears, observing that the family’s suffering during the period of delay could not be overlooked.
Why did the widow approach the consumer commission?
The complaint was filed by Rupnagar resident Sukhwinder Singh on behalf of his mother, Prakash Kaur. Her husband, Nasib Singh, had retired from the Chandigarh Transport Undertaking (CTU) on March 31, 1995, and his pension was sanctioned in accordance with the applicable rules.
Following his death on November 28, 2001, the family pension was transferred to Prakash Kaur with effect from November 29, 2001. However, subsequent revisions to the pension were allegedly not implemented correctly.
The complainant alleged that despite several communications from the pension-sanctioning authorities, repeated visits to the UCO Bankbranch in Rupnagar and formal representations, the bank failed to release the revised family pension and other admissible benefits.
These included the applicable old-age allowance, Leave Travel Concession (LTC) benefits and revised medical allowances.
What was UCO Bank’s defence?
During the proceedings, the bank’s counsel argued that UCO Bank had no role in sanctioning or determining the pension and was only responsible for maintaining the pension account and facilitating withdrawals.
The bank denied any deliberate delay or deficiency in service, maintaining that the delay was bona fide and occurred during the recalculation and verification of the pension claim.
However, the commission observed that the bank corrected the pension structure and released the accumulated arrears only after the consumer complaint had been filed.
What did the consumer commission say?
Dismissing the bank’s defence, the commission highlighted the repeated efforts made by the complainant to secure the pensionary benefits due to her mother.
“The complainant had to make repeated visits, representations, and also serve legal notices to get the pensionary benefits due to her. The delay certainly caused inconvenience, hardship and mental harassment. Merely because the arrears were subsequently paid, the hardship suffered cannot be ignored,” it said, as per the report.
The commission concluded that the bank’s deficiency in service stood established and directed the Branch Manager of UCO Bank’s Rupnagar branch to pay ₹15,000 in compensation to the complainant.
