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Kuldeep Gauniyal (Sr Manager - Legal)     06 January 2012

Consumer protection act

We have been facing tough time in Morena (MP) consumer court.  Dispite our compliance in the matter, the judge has issued the NBW and insisted the co. person to be present before him.  The judge thereafter imposed the penalty on all the 3 OPs and closed the matter.  He also threatened for imprisonment of seven days if the penalty is not paid.   I think this is misuse of the authority and the judge acted as he is dealing with the Civil or Criminal matter.  Is there any method to report this type of harassment? 



Learning

 5 Replies

Kumar Doab (FIN)     06 January 2012

Kindly consult your lawyer and check if there is no scope of such action, in your case.

It is felt that there is a scope for penalty, imprisionment, in the circumstances warrant it. The presidentcan ask the company person to be present before him.

If you have been complying then you can point out the compliance to the President of the forum.

Kuldeep Gauniyal (Sr Manager - Legal)     12 January 2012

We did but he was adament. To satisfy his ego, he wanted company person to be present in person despite compliance long back.

Kumar Doab (FIN)     12 January 2012

The president may be having some valid reasons. The president can call the company personnel/manager. The president can even call the person/designation by name if the name/designation is included in the complaint. It is not unusual.

It shall be appropriate to ensure compliance.It is a form of court of law and lawful powers are vested in the president. You must not make it a matter of ego for the company.

Kindly look at another situation.

Many Airtel internet customers due to various issues opted for cancellation of internet connection by email. phone call to customer care, in person at Airtel office, by letter. They are told verbally that connection shall be disconnected and some of the customer were able to get a written advice that connection is to be disconnected.

Now the game starts. Connection is not disconnected and bills are sent, while some of the customers get bills, some do not. Then there are collection calls then recovery calls by recovery agencies who resort to abusive pratices.Some customers are called by advocates/recovery agencies,and some one posing as police authority. The underlined reason is company's top bosses have issued instructions not to disconect the connections and retention staff post false feedback in note pad of the company computer that customer has been conatcted and he has agreed to retain the connection. Even Nodal officer, appellate authority prolong the matter.

Some of the customers form a community and thrash the local collection head and succeed in getting disconnection, nil payment advice and an apology from company. It does not happen at all places.

This community approaches police comissioner and remind him he is responsible for maintaining law and order and how can all comapnies pose as police authority and how can all SHO/all police authority continue to sit on such complaints. Why company personel are not called and arrested.

The community of customers approach State RTI association and ask to look into the fate of consumer cases.  Senior RTI activists visit Dist/State consumer forums and interview litigants since how long their complaints are dumped in forums and these reprots are published. State authorities pull up forums.

It gets published and exposed that company person are confident that they shall not have to attend court and their lawyer or some legal cell shall manage and they escape with some mild fianncial penalty.

What shall these Presidents do? They shall become strict. If the complainat is aware he can excercise more presuure on forum and President may become more strict.

We do not know what is your case.......... May the oppossite party is strong.

What  you can do is drill some sense in company and company person and make them appear.

In case of HDFC bank their Regional Head had to travel on his own and stand before a well informed customer as had he failed his country head would have has to appear. This man had to apologise with folded hands to customer in presence of many. In another case HDFC bank persnnel had to travel from state capital location to dist. consumerf forum on not only once but many times and he had to state in forum that he shall drill sense in his company and avoid repeating such incidences.
 

Kuldeep Gauniyal (Sr Manager - Legal)     12 January 2012

Thanks for your detailed views. 

This was a simple award of the Dist. Forum to be complied within a specified period.  We took longer time in compliance, which hurt ego of the President and despite the complainant accepting receipt of the payment.  The President did not allow him to withdraw the Execution Petition.

Anyway the matter has been sorted out now.

Kumar Doab (FIN)     12 January 2012

it is good that the matter has been sorted out.

Kindly explain it to the company personnel:

-The decision of the forum has to be complied within the specified date/period.

-If the decision is not complied the affected party files execution petition, which is another burden on the party.

 

and also the  consequences of  delay as Presient has been vested with certain powers.

This shall make your job easier in times to come.


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