3 min readApr 4, 2026 03:38 PM IST
The Allahabad High Court’s Lucknow bench has taken serious note of a Motor Account Claims Tribunal (MACT) Presiding Officer not releasing a Rs 7 lakh insurance claim to a widow, Renoo Singh, despite clear High Court directions issued in 2019.
The court sought an explanation from the Presiding Officer for insisting that the amount will not be released until the applicant ensures her previous counsel appears before the Tribunal, even though the widow had said there was a dispute between her previous and current lawyers.
“The Presiding Officer shall give an explanation as to under what circumstances the impugned order dated 06.02.2026 has been passed, and under what authority of law can he pass such an order of not releasing the sum without prior hearing the erstwhile counsel for the petitioner, where there appears to be infighting between them,” the bench of Justice Jaspreet Singh stated in its April 3 order.
Renoo’s husband had died in a motor vehicle accident around 20 years ago.
While hearing her petition, Justice Singh observed that she had filed a claim petition under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, which was allowed on September 29, 2007, awarding a sum of Rs 7,12,000, along with interest at 6% per annum.
This was challenged by the insurance firm.
The court further observed that the matter was taken up in an appeal and decided during a Lok Adalat in 2019, whereby the insurance company had withdrawn the appeal and the compensation was to be paid within 60 days from the said order.
In the order, the court asked the Presiding Officer to explain why the money has not been released despite the Lok Adalat order passed on September 14, 2019, “which clearly directed that the amount be paid in six months “… [But] more than six years have lapsed and the petitioner has not received the said amount,” the court observed.
Story continues below this ad
The bench observed that the petitioner levelled allegations against her previous counsel. However, it observed, what is most alarming is that in a fight between two counsel, it appears that the Tribunal has also got involved, “which cannot be countenanced at all”.
The court observed that from perusal, the manner and the content of the order passed by the MACT Presiding Officer, Sultanpur district, is not acceptable.
Listing the hearing on the matter on April 10, the court stated in the order, “Let explanation be furnished by the Presiding Officer by the next date.”
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
