P SAROJAM Vs. L I C OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The plaintiff - appellant is the widow of Neelakanta Pillai, who died on 2-4-1974 at the age of 33 years. He was a Local Fund Auditor in the service of the State of Tamilnadu. He had on 20-9-1973 made Ext. B7 proposal for insurance on his life for a sum of Rs. 1,75,000/- to the defendant, the Life Insurance Corporation of India. Since his salary was not commensurate with the premium payable, the defendant Corporation accepted the proposal for insurance on his life for a sum of Rs. 40,000/-. On the same day as Ext. B7, his wife the plaintiff made another proposal Ext. B8 for insurance on his life for a sum of Rs. 1,35,000/-. This proposal was accepted by the defendant. In both the policies the plaintiff is the nominee to receive payment when the policies mature. On the death of Neelakanta Pillai, the plaintiff demanded payment of the amounts due under the two policies. The defendant repudiated the policies as obtained by fraud and on suppression of material facts relating to the life assured. Hence the plaintiff filed the suit for recovery of the amounts due under the two policies covered by the proposals Exts. B7 and B8, accepted by the defendant Corporation. The court below dismissed the suit finding that the policies were obtained without disclosing material facts regarding the health of the assured and hence the defendant was entitled to repudiate the contracts of insurance. It is against this that the plaintiff has come up in appeal.

(2.) Both the proposals Exts. B7 and B8 are accompanied by 'personal statements' signed by Neelakanta Pillai wherein the questionnaire relating to conditions of health is answered to show that he was of perfect health. The questionnaire takes in questions particularly relating to ailments if any that the person whose life is proposed to be assured had suffered in the past. As against the question as to whether he had at any time suffered fainting attacks, pain in the chest, breathlessness, palpitation, or any disease of the heart, the answer is 'no'. To the question as to what has been his usual state of health, his answer is 'good'. In answer to the question as to whether he had remained absent from work on grounds of health during the last two years, he has stated 'no'. The proposals Ext. B7 and B8 indicate a sound state of health of Neelakanta Pillai free from all ailments until the date of the , proposal. The medical officer of the defendant Corporation had in Ext. B7 certified the life proposed for assurance as 'good', and he considers the life as first class. A similar certificate relating to Ext. B8 proposal is produced as Ext. B8 (a) certifying the life of the assured as First Class. Since however Neelakanta Pillai died shortly after the acceptance of the proposals and even before the premiums due for the second quarter were due, the defendant Corporation made investigations relating to the state of health of the assured and found that he was suffering from heart ailment at the time when the proposals were made, his state of health and the history of the ailment were not disclosed and hence the contracts of insurance are vitiated by fraud and suppression of material facts. It has come out in evidence that Neelakanta Pillai was on leave due to heart ailment at the time when the proposals Exts. B7 and B8 were made. Exts. X2 and X3 are his leave applications and Ext.X4 is a medical certificate accompanying Ext. X3 produced by D.W.2 the Assistant Examiner of Local Fund Accounts Thirunelveli, on summons issued by Court. Exts. X2 and X3 applications for leave are in Tamil. Exts. B2(a) and B3(a) are the translations in English of Exts. X2 and X3. Ext. X2 is the application for earned leave for 120 days from 6-7-1973 to 2-11-1973. The reason for the leave applied for is that the applicant is suffering from weakness of the heart for the last two years for which he has to undergo medical treatment. Ext. X3 is the application for extension of leave for a further period of four months, from 3-11-1973 onwards. In Ext. X3 Neelakanta Pillai has stated that he is still suffering from weakness of the heart and his family doctor has advised him to undergo treatment for a further period of four months. Ext. X3 is accompanied by a medical certificate Ext. X4 issued by Dr. Ramamurthy of Nagercoil examined as DW.4. Ext. X4 shows that Neelakanta Pillai was suffering from heart disease "Mitral Stenosis with rigurgitation" and he needs bed rest. He was admitted in the Medical College Hospital, Trivandrum on 7-12-1973 and was discharged on 13-12-1973 advising complete rest. Ext. X1 is the case sheet, relating to Neelakanta Pillai produced by D.W.1 Dr. P. P. Joseph, Associate Professor in the Medical College, Trivandrum. D.W.1 deposes that Neelakanta Pillai was suffering from Mitral Stenosis and Mitral Incompetence with congestive cardiac failure and that was a case of heart disease of a serious nature. He has further deposed that the patient gave the history of palpitation during physical exertion for a period of five years and that he had rheumatic fever at the age of 16 years. The entries in Ext. X1 were made by Dr. Velayudhan Pillai, Assistant Professor of Medicine who had examined the patient first. Velayudhan Pillai is not available for examination in Court as he is out of India.

(3.) Exts. X5 and X6 are the case sheets relating to Neelakanta Pillai maintained in the Medical College Hospital, Vellore, produced by D.W.6, the Head of the Department of Cardiology attached to the hospital. D.W.6 has deposed that Neelakanta Pillai reported at the Cardiology Outpatient Department on 22-3-1974 and the doctor who examined him made a note of the case history and recorded his findings diagnosing the case as of rheumatic heart disease. D.W.6 had occasion to examine the patient on 25-3-1974, and Ext. X5(a) notes were prepared by him. He directed the patient to be admitted in the hospital and on admission he was under his treatment. He diagnosed that the patient was suffering from rheumatic valve disease, mitral regurgitator mitral stenosis, A trial fibrillation and congestive cardiac failure. D.W.6 swears that all his ailments are ailments of the heart and are of a serious nature. The patient had reported his case history that he had symptoms of the disease for the last seven years. D.W.6 swears that the case history given by the patient and his own findings relating to his illness tallied.