The outcome of the case, which has now been adjourned many times, can raise the issue of validity of appointments of existing CMDs of PSU general insurance companies along with chairman and four managing directors of Life Insurance Corporation(LIC) who were selected by the BBB in the last four years
New Delhi:
The Delhi High Court has further adjourned the “Singh Vs Government of India” case over the appointment of CMD of United India Insurance (UII) involving Banks Board Bureau(BBB) to 23rd Jan 2023.
The case, which was listed by the Delhi HC for the final hearing on Thursday, couldn’t make it,as the court didn’t sit in the afternoon due to central vista inauguration in New Delhi.
In November 2021, Inderjeet Singh, general manger, New India Assurance had gone to the Delhi HC on the issue of appointment of Satyajit Tripathy (who is currently CMD, United India Insurance (UII)) by the government on the basis of recommendation of the Banks Board Bureau (BBB), which was earlier the headhunting agency for top management of PSU banks and insurance companies and has already been replaced by FSIB(Financial Services Institutions Bureau).
However, the outcome of the case, which has now been adjourned many times, can raise the issue of validity of appointments of existing CMDs of PSU general insurance companies along with chairman and four managing directors of Life Insurance Corporation(LIC) who were selected by the BBB in the last four years.
Earlier, while deciding another case involving a general manger of a PSU general insurance company, Delhi HC had struck down the BBB’s power to select directors of PSU general insurance companies and the government had implemented the verdict by cancelling all the appointments of then serving directors who were selected by the BBB.
Also in another outcome of the Delhi HC judgment, pronouncing the invalidity of the BBB’s power to appoint the top management of PSU insurance companies, the government has recently replaced BBB with FSIB.
FSIB also quickly has undertaken its first selection exercise in the PSU general insurance industry by recommending Neerja Kapur and Girija Subramanian as CMD of NIA and Agriculture Insurance Company(AIC) respectively in July end.
Both Kapur and Subramanian can take over their new jobs after ACC(Appointment Committee of Cabinet) clears their appointments which should happen shortly.