Pradheesh Sivaraman finds his father’s death deeply perplexing. “They made him wait for nine long years, repeatedly rejecting his claims for his life’s savings due to supposed documentation issues. Then, just after he took his own life, the provident fund payment was suddenly processed without any additional documents from our end. Ironically, they didn’t even request his death certificate,” explained Pradheesh, son of 69-year-old K P Sivaraman, who tragically ended his life inside the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) office in Kochi last month.
The EPFO has settled the outstanding dues to Sivaraman’s family. However, according to the family, the payment was processed without the need for any additional documents, aside from a letter confirming Sivaraman’s wife as the legal nominee. This letter was submitted to the EPFO office following his demise.
Despite lacking the financial means to challenge the system, he emphasized that the family remains determined to seek legal action to attain justice for Sivaraman and prevent similar injustices from befalling others’ fathers. An FIR was filed by the police on February 7, and the case is currently under judicial review.
“My father is no longer with us. However, we are determined to pursue legal action to ensure that no other father experiences this injustice. They could have released the funds earlier, but they chose to wait until his passing. It’s his hard-earned savings,” stated 39-year-old Pradheesh, who works as a daily wage earner.
According to EPFO regulations, Form 20 must be submitted to claim the withdrawal of PF for deceased members. Required documents for claiming the amount by family members include a death certificate, guardianship certificate (if the application is made by a guardian other than the natural guardian of a minor member), and a copy of a blank or canceled cheque for payment to be transferred to the claimant’s account.
The Indian Express’s inquiries to the EPFO regarding the payment made to Sivaraman’s family and the absence of a request for additional documents went unanswered.
Sivaraman, originally from Thrissur, Kerala, had retired from Apollo Tyres and had been visiting the EPFO office regularly for the past nine years after his retirement. EPFO had withheld dues exceeding Rs 90,000, citing discrepancies in his identification documents. Officials demanded his school leaving certificate, which he couldn’t provide, resulting in the denial of his PF amount.
On February 7, he tragically died by suicide, consuming poison inside the EPFO office in Kochi.
According to data analyzed and reported by The Indian Express, there has been a significant increase in the rejection rates of EPF final settlements. The rejection rate has risen from approximately 13 percent in 2017-18 to nearly 34 percent in 2022-23. This translates to over one in every three claims for the final settlement of provident fund amounts made by members being turned down by the EPFO. Among the three categories of PF claims – final settlement, transfer, and withdrawal – the rejection rate for the final settlement of PF claims has notably surged over the past five years.
