Controlled business under life insurance law extends to ancillary businesses, triggering statutory vesting of related assets and liabilities.

The definition of controlled business under the Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956 was read with the Explanation to section 2(3) to include a composite insurer's capital redemption business and annuity certain business, alongside life business. The construction treated the phrase "business appertaining to life insurance business" as extending to those specified ancillary businesses. On that basis, the vesting provisions in sections 7(1) and 7(2) operated so that the assets and liabilities relating to that controlled business vested in the Corporation, including the corresponding property, investments, rights, and documents.

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Issues: (i) whether capital redemption business and annuity certain business formed part of the controlled business of a composite insurer under the Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956; (ii) whether the assets relating to the capital obligation business vested in the Corporation and could be transferred by the insurer in the manner claimed.

Issue (i): whether capital redemption business and annuity certain business formed part of the controlled business of a composite insurer under the Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956

Analysis: The definition of controlled business was read with the Explanation to section 2(3). The Explanation was treated as clarifying that an insurer carrying on life business together with only capital redemption business or annuity certain business, or both, was still within the statutory description, and that the words "accordingly" and "business appertaining to his life insurance business" extended the same meaning to composite insurers. The construction adopted preserved the scheme that all business concerning life insurance, including the named ancillary businesses, fell within the controlled business.

Conclusion: The capital redemption business and annuity certain business were held to be included in the controlled business of the appellant.

Issue (ii): whether the assets relating to the capital obligation business vested in the Corporation and could be transferred by the insurer in the manner claimed

Analysis: Sections 7(1) and 7(2) provided for vesting of all assets and liabilities appertaining to the controlled business in the Corporation on the appointed day, including property, investments, rights, and documents relating to that business. Since the capital obligation business was held to fall within the controlled business, the corresponding assets also vested. The objection that the Corporation could not select assets did not survive after the insurer conceded that investments of the relevant value could be chosen.

Conclusion: The assets of the capital obligation business vested in the Corporation and the appellant's challenge to the asset transfer failed.

Final Conclusion: The appeal failed in full, and the Corporation's entitlement to the disputed business and its assets was upheld.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a statute defines controlled business to include all business appertaining to life insurance, an Explanation may extend that expression to specified ancillary businesses, and the vesting provisions will operate accordingly to transfer the related assets and liabilities to the statutory corporation.

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