LAW FOR ALL

Burglary and House Breaking Policy. - not applies - no compensation as It is clear from the facts of the present case that the Appellant has made out a case of theft without a forcible entry. =“SCOPE OF COVER This Insurance Policy provides cover against loss or damage by Burglary or House breaking i.e. (theft following an actual, forcible and violent entry of and/or exit from the premises) in respect of contents of offices, warehouses, shops, etc. and cash in safe or strong room and also damage caused to the premises, except as detailed below:”= it was detected that some parts of the plant and machinery were missing from the factory premises = The Appellant filed compensation application No. 45 of 2001 under Section 12-B read with Section 36-A of the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices (MRTP) Act, 1969, which was rejected by the MRTP Commission, New Delhi by its Order dated 17-08-2005. Aggrieved by the said Order, the Appellant has preferred the present Appeal.= A claim was lodged with Respondent No. 1 on 16-12-1997 for an amount of Rs. 34,40,650/- under the Burglary and House Breaking Policy. The valuation reports given by GEC, Calcutta, the machines supplier and Alpha Transformer Ltd., Bhubaneswar were relied upon by the Appellant/Claimant. The claim of the Appellant was repudiated by Respondent No. 1 on 31-03-1998 on the ground that the alleged loss did not come within the purview of the insurance policy. = This court in General Assurance Society Ltd. v. Chandmull Jain and Anr., reported in [1966] 3 SCR 500 held that there is no difference between a contract of insurance and any other contract except that in a contract of insurance there is a requirement of uberima fides, i.e., good faith on the part of the insured and the contract is likely to be construed contra proferentes, i.e., against the company in case of ambiguity or doubt. It was further held in the said judgment that the duty of the Court is to interpret the words in which the contract is expressed by the parties and it is not for the Court to make a new contract, however reasonable. In United India Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Orient Treasures (P) Ltd. (supra) cited by the Counsel for the Appellant, it was held that there is no ambiguity in the insurance policy and so the rule of contra proferentem was not applicable. A standard policy of insurance is different from other Contracts and in a claim under a standard policy the rule of contra proferentem is to be applied. The Policy in this case is in a standard form. The policy for Burglary and House Breaking in United India Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Orient Treasures (P) Ltd. (supra) and the policy in this case are identical. If there is any ambiguity or doubt the clause in the Policy should be interpreted in favour of the insured. For the aforementioned reasons, we uphold the order of the MRTP Commission and dismiss the Appeal with no order as to costs.