The Delhi High Court has asked the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) and New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) to pay Rs 40,000 to a widow for forcing her to file a litigation to get her husband’s insured money from the LIC.

“This entire litigation was wholly unnecessary. Had the LIC or even the NDMC cared to arrive at a settlement, at least after the present writ petition was filed, this judgement would have been avoided,” said Justice S Ravindra Bhat in an order.

“Records show at least 12 hearings have taken place...this is an appropriate case for the award of the cost of Rs 40,000,” the court said and directed both LIC and NDMC to pay the amount to Subiya Devi, widow of Sagmuni, within six weeks.

Subiya Devi’s counsel Anu Mehta and Rubinder Pal Ghumman told the court that the petitioner’s husband was an employee of the NDMC and had obtained an LIC policy named “Salary Saving Scheme”.

LIC had assured that in the event of the untimely death of the employee covered by the policy and upon fulfilment of other stipulated conditions, an assured amount was payable to the deceased’s nominee, the counsel told the court.

The husband was suffering from tuberculosis and died on September 10, 2002.