LIC chairman MR Kumar doesn’t get extension; govt appoints Siddhartha Mohanty as interim chief for 3 months

Siddhartha Mohanty, the current Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of LIC Housing Finance, has been given the additional charge of Chairman of Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) for a period of three months starting from March 14th. This development comes as MR Kumar, the current Chairman of LIC, has not received an extension, as reported by the insurance company.

It should be noted that this is an interim arrangement, and Siddhartha Mohanty will continue to carry out his existing duties as MD and CEO of LIC Housing Finance. 

Siddhartha Mohanty was appointed as the MD of LIC on February 1st, 2021, replacing TC Suseel Kumar, who retired on January 31st, 2021. He is scheduled to serve as the MD of LIC until his superannuation on June 30th, 2023.

Centre's decision to not extend Kumar's term comes at a time when the insurer's investments in Adani Group, hit by a slew of allegations by US short-seller Hindenburg Research, have come under intense scrutiny.

The insurer was staring at notional losses until recently, before the Adani stocks started rising again, partly owing to Rs 15,446 crore the Gautam Adani-led conglomerate raised from US investment firm GQG Partners.

Kumar recently said the insurer's officials were happy with Adani Group after meeting its top management. “I can only confirm that the conversation has happened to the department. But there's nothing you can state as of now. But yeah, we've had a meeting…and we are quite happy about this meeting,” he said.

As per the terms of his appointment, Siddhartha Mohanty was given a pay scale of Rs 205,400 - Rs 224,400 from the date of his assumption of charge of the appointment on or after February 1st, 2021, until the date of his superannuation or until further instructions, whichever is earlier.

LIC is led by one Chairman and four MDs, namely Bishnu Charan Patnaik, Ipe Mini, Siddhartha Mohanty, and Raj Kumar. Mangalam Ramasubramanian Kumar is the current Chairman of the company.

LIC is the largest insurer in India and the fifth-largest life insurer in the world in terms of life insurance gross written premiums (GWP). It is also the tenth-largest insurance company in the world by total assets. When compared to the second-largest life insurer in the Indian market, LIC has the largest market share margin among market leaders in the top 7 markets worldwide. The company has 13.35 lakh agents and services policies worth Rs 27.80 crore, making it the third-strongest insurance brand globally.

Also read: LIC met top officials of Adani Group, happy with the outcome