Consumer Protection Act, 1986: Deficiency of service – Dispute pertained to a residential flat which was allegedly booked by the appellant – Appellant filed complaint before National Commission in 2016 – On 1611.2018, National Commission passed order granting last opportunity to file rejoinder and evidence – By impugned order, National commission dismissed the complaint observing that the complainant was granted last opportunity to file rejoinder and evidence which he failed to do may be for the reason that the complainant may not have any merit in his case – On appeal, held: The purpose for setting up the National Commission was to protect the rights of consumers to seek access to justice under the Consumer Protection Act – In the instant case, there was a conditional order dated 16.11.2018 requiring the appellants to file a rejoinder and evidence within a period of four weeks, failing which the complaint would be dismissed automatically – On 15.2.2019, the National Commission declined to grant any further time to the appellants and, proceeded to observe that there was a delay in filing a rejoinder and evidence and that it was perhaps because the appellants did not have any merit in the case – This inference was unwarranted – The ground for rejection of the complaint was technical and in disregard of the requirements of substantial justice – Orders of such nature detract from the true purpose for which the Commission was established – Such dismissals only add to the burden of litigation and defeat the purpose of ensuring justice in the consumer fora – Though the Act stipulates a period for disposing of a consumer complaint, it is also a sobering reflection that complaints cannot be disposed of due to non-availability of resources and infrastructure – In this background, it is harsh to penalise a bona fide litigant for marginal delays that may occur in the judicial process – Impugned order of the National Commission dated 15.2.2019 and Consumer Complaint is restored to the file of the National Commission.
As published in the Supreme Court Reports, Supreme Court of India. Text from the Indian Supreme Court Judgments open data set (Dattam Labs), CC BY 4.0.
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