Page No.# 1/7 GAHC010149712026 2026:GAU-AS:12413 THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : WP(C)/3798/2019 SABITRI RANI SAHA AND 5 ORS. WIDOW OF LT. MANINDRA CHANDRA SAHA R/O P.O. GOSSAIGAON DIST.-KOKRAJHAR BTAD ASSAM 2: MONORANJAN SAHA S/O LT. MANINDRA CHANDRA SAHA R/O P.O. GOSSAIGAON DIST.-KOKRAJHAR BTAD ASSAM 3: NIRANJAN SAHA S/O LT. MANINDRA CHANDRA SAHA R/O P.O. GOSSAIGAON DIST.-KOKRAJHAR BTAD ASSAM 4: BASUDEV SAHA S/O LT. MANINDRA CHANDRA SAHA R/O P.O. GOSSAIGAON DIST.-KOKRAJHAR BTAD ASSAM 5: BICHITRA SAHA W/O SRI APURBO LAL SAHA D/O LT. MANINDRA CHANDRA SAHA R/O NEAR DOWN TOWN HOSPITAL G.S.ROAD P.O. GUWAHATI Page No.# 2/7 DIST.-KAMRUP (METRO) ASSAM 6: SAMPA SAHA W/O SRI ARUN SAHA D/O LT MANINDRA CHANDRA SAHA R/O B.S. ROAD P.O. AND DIST.-COOCH BEHAR WEST BENGAL VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM AND 4 ORS. REP. BY THE COMMISSIONER AND SECRETARY TO THE GOVT. OF ASSAM HOME DEPTT. DISPUR P.O. GUWAHATI-781006 ASSAM 2:THE SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE KOKRAJHAR PO- KOKRAJHAR BTAD ASSAM 3:THE O.C. GOSSAIGAON POLICE STATION P.O. GOSSAIGAON DIST.-KOKRAJHAR ASSAM 4:THE ORIENTAL INSURANCE CO. LTD. BONGAIGAON BRANCH OFFICE P.O. AND DIST. BONGAIGAON ASSAM 5:THE ORIENTAL INSURANCE CO. LTD. REGIONAL OFFICE G.S.ROAD ULUBARI P.O. GUWAHATI-781007 ASSAM ------------ Advocate for : MS. M GAUR Advocate for : GA ASSAM appearing for THE STATE OF ASSAM AND 4 ORS. Linked Case : I.A.(Civil)/2465/2026 Page No.# 3/7 SRI MONORANJAN SAHA SONS OF LATE MANINDRA CHANDRA SAHA 2: SRI NIRANJAN SAHA SONS OF LATE MANINDRA CHANDRA SAHA 3: SRI BASUDEV SAHA SONS OF LATE MANINDRA CHANDRA SAHA ALL ARE RESIDENTS OF P.O. GOSAIGAON DISTRICTKOKRAJHAR BTAD ASSAM 4: SMTI BICHITRA SAHA DAUGHTER OF LATE MANINDRA CHANDRA SAHA AND LATE SABITRI RANI SAHA AND WIFE OF SRI APURBO LAL SAHA RESIDENT OF NEAR DOWN TOWN HOSPITAL G. S. ROAD P.O. GUWAHATI-781 006 ASSAM 5: SMTI SAMPA SAHA DAUGHTER OF LATE MANINDRA CHANDRA SAHA AND WIFE OF SRI ARUN SAHA RESIDENT OF B.S. ROAD P.O. AND DISTRICT- COOCH BEHAR WEST BENGA VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM REPRESENTED BY THE COMMISSIONER AND SECRETARY TO THE GOVT. OF ASSAM, HOME DEPARTMENT, DISPUR, P.O. GUWAHATI -781 006, 2:THE SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE KOKRAJHAR DISTRICT P.O. KOKRAJHAR BTAD ASSAM 3:THE OC GOSALGAON POLICE STATION P.O. GOSAIGAON DISTRICT- KOKRAJHAR ASSAM 4:THE ORIENTAL INSURANCE CO LTD Page No.# 4/7 BONGAIGAON BRANCH OFFICE P.O. AND DISTRICT- BONGAIGAON ASSAM 5:THE ORIENTAL INSURANCE CO LTD REGIONAL OFFICER G.S. ROAD ULUBARI P.O. GUWAHATI-781 007 ASSAM Advocate for the Petitioner : MR J C GAUR, Advocate for the Respondent : GA, ASSAM, BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MANISH CHOUDHURY ORDER Date : 26.08.2026 Heard Mr. J.C. Gaur, learned counsel for the writ petitioners - applicant and Ms. R.D. Mozumdar, learned counsel for the respondent - opposite party nos. 4 & 5. Also heard Mr. J. Handique, learned Junior Government Advocate, Assam appearing for the respondent - opposite party nos. 1, 2 & 3. 2. The writ petitioner - applicant no. 1 is the wife of one Late Manindra Chandra Saha; the writ petitioner - applicant nos. 2-4 are sons of Late Manindra Chandra Saha; and the writ petitioner - applicant nos. 5 & 6 are the daughters of Late Manindra Chandra Saha. The writ petitioner - applicants have preferred the present writ petition in the capacity of legal representatives of Late Manindra Chandra Saha. 3. It is the case of the writ petitioner - applicants that during his lifetime, Late Manindra Chandra Saha owned a vehicle [Truck] bearing Registration no. AML-461 [‘the subject-vehicle’, for short] and it was stolen by miscreants in 1992. In that connection, Late Manindra Chandra Saha lodged a First Information Report [FIR] on 07.04.1992 and also, lodged an insurance claim with the respondent – opposite party no. 4 as the insured on the premise that at the Page No.# 5/7 time of theft of the subject-vehicle, the subject vehicle was under a valid insurance policy. The FIR was registered as Gosaigaon Police Station Case no. 54/1992. The respondent – opposite party no. 4 had duly acknowledged the receipt of the insurance claim by registering it as Claim no. 3223CO/5/MV/45/91-92 against Policy no. 92/322300/5/0/MV/619. On 21.04.1992, the respondent – opposite party no. 4 sent a notice to Manindra Chandra Saha, asking him to submit a number of documents including the Final Police Investigation Report to consider and process the insurance claim. 4. It has been averred that Manindra Chandra Saha expired on 27.05.1997. When even after 07 – 08 years of submission of the insurance claim and death of Manindra Chandra Saha, the respondent – opposite party nos. 2, 4 & 5 did not bring the process in connection with the insurance claim to any finality, the present writ petitioner – applicants had approached this Court by way of a writ petition, W.P.[C.] no. 1762/2000 with a contention that the writ petitioner – applicants’ claim for theft of the subject-vehicle had not been entertained by the respondent – opposite party nos. 4 & 5 Insurance Company for want of the Final Police Report. In the said writ petition, a prayer was made for a direction to the concerned Officer In-Charge / Investigating Officer to submit the Final Report before the Court of learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kokrajhar in connection with Gosaigaon Police Station Case no. 54/1992. 4.1. By an Order dated 24.04.2003, the writ petition, W.P.[C.] no. 1762/2000 was disposed of with a direction to the State respondents including the Officer In-Charge, Gosaigaon Police Station to take necessary steps for submission of the Final Report to enable the petitioners to place the claim before the respondent Insurance Company within a period of three months. 4.2. When even after elapse of more than a decade no Final Report in connection with Gosaigaon Police Station Case no. 54/1992 was seen to have been submitted, the writ petitioner - applicants have once again approached this Court by the present writ petition seeking inter-alia a direction to the respondent authorities, more particularly, the respondent no. 3 to comply with the direction made in the Order dated 24.04.2003 passed by this Court in the writ petition, W.P.[C.] no. 1762/2000 or alternatively, for a direction to the respondent Page No.# 6/7 – opposite party nos. 4 & 5 to settle the claim of the writ petitioner - applicants without waiting for the Final Report in connection with Gosaigaon Police Station Case no. 54/1992. 4.3. During the pendency of the writ petition, the writ petitioner - applicants came to learn that after completing investigation into Gosaigaon Police Station Case no. 54/1992, the Investigating Officer had submitted a Final Report vide Final Report no. 20/2024 on 06.09.2024. In the Final Report so submitted, it was inter-alia mentioned that even though the incident was true, the driver and the handyman of the subject-vehicle were untraced. 5. The interlocutory application, I.A.[C.] no. 2465/2026 has been preferred to bring on record the subsequent fact of submission of Final Report no. 20/2024 in connection with Gosaigaon Police Station Case no. 54/1992, on 06.09.2024. 6. Mr. Gour, learned counsel appearing for the writ petitioner - applicants has submitted that a copy of the Final Form/Report has already been submitted to the respondent – opposite party nos. 4 & 5 on 10.01.2025. He has submitted that pendency of this writ petition is perhaps the reason for which the respondent – opposite party nos. 4 & 5 are for not bringing the process of the insurance claim in relation to the subject-vehicle to a finality. Mr. Gour has submitted that the writ petition and the interlocutory application can be disposed of observing that the respondent – opposite party nos. 4 & 5 would consider the insurance claim to bring the process to a finality as expeditiously as possible. 7. Ms. Mozumdar, learned counsel appearing for the respondent – opposite party nos. 4 & 5 has submitted that since the Final Report is stated to have been submitted by the writ petitioner – applicants in connection with their insurance claim, the process of the insurance claim will be taken forward to bring it to a finality within a reasonable period of time. According to Ms. Mozumdar, a period of three months would be sufficient to consider the insurance claim submitted in connection with the subject-vehicle and to bring the process to a finality. 8. In view of the broad consensus arrived at by the learned counsel for the parties in the afore-stated manner, both the writ petition and the interlocutory application are disposed of with a direction to the respondent – opposite party nos. 4 & 5 to take the insurance claim, Page No.# 7/7 submitted by Late Manindra Chandra Saha during his lifetime and pursued by the present writ petitioner – applicants, in connection with the subject-vehicle on board and thereafter, to consider the same and to bring the process to a finality as per law. It is further observed that the entire process be completed within a period of three months from the date of submission of a certified copy of this order by the writ petitioner – applicants at the Office of the respondent no. 4. 9. With the observations made and directions given above, both the writ petition and the interlocutory application are disposed of. JUDGE Comparing Assistant