Facts of the Case

Omkeshwar approached the Chhattisgarh High Court on behalf of himself and his mother, the legal heirs of his sister who was a member of the Group Insurance Scheme (GIS) and died on 01.08.2017. A cheque of Rs. 3,00,000/- was issued in favour of the mother on 10.01.2018 but was dishonoured for insufficient funds. Despite being asked to return the cheque and assured of reprocessing, no payment had been made even after more than four years. The Secretary, Department of Commercial Tax-GST, Chhattisgarh, was named as a formal respondent alongside the Forest Department and Finance Department, but the dispute has nothing to do with GST law — it is entirely about a delayed insurance benefit payment to a deceased government employee's family.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether the petitioner and his mother, as legal heirs and beneficiaries, were entitled to release of the GIS payment despite the earlier dishonoured cheque.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • The claim had been processed and a cheque issued, but it was dishonoured for insufficient funds; despite assurances, the payment was never reprocessed even after four years.

Respondent's Arguments

  • The State respondents did not dispute the factual position regarding the dishonoured cheque and sought time.

Court Order / Findings

  • The Court directed the petitioner and his mother to submit a fresh representation to the concerned Divisional Forest Officer.
  • The respondents were directed to consider and decide the representation, and if there was no legal hurdle, to take steps to make payment within three months from receipt of the representation.

Important Clarification

This order provides no GST guidance whatsoever — it is a service/employee-benefits matter disposed of with procedural directions to expedite payment of a Group Insurance Scheme claim. Readers should not treat the naming of the Commercial Tax-GST department as a respondent as indicating any tax angle to the dispute.

Sections Involved

  • Constitution of India, Article 226

Decision – In Favour of

Disposed of with directions favouring the petitioner's family — respondents directed to reconsider and expedite the GIS payment, but no final adjudication on the payment itself was made.

Case Details

  • Court: High Court of Chhattisgarh, Bilaspur
  • Case Number: WPS No. 4878 of 2023
  • Coram: Justice Parth Prateem Sahu
  • Date of Order: 20.07.2023

Link to Download the Order

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