26.02.2016
MR. UTPAL KUMAR BHATTACHARYA, HON’BLE MEMBER.
Instant Appeal has been preferred by the appellant/OP Bank u/s 15 of the C P Act,1986 challenging the order dt.21/05/2014 passed by the Ld. District Forum, Burdwan allowing the prayer on contest against the appellant/OP with the direction upon the Appellant/OP Bank to:-
1. find out the Title Deeds which were mortgaged at the time of taking loan within 30 days from the date of the order, in default, the Appellant/OP Bank has to pay Rs.5,00,000/-, being the total compensation for the mental agony and harassment to the Respondents/complainants within 45 days from the date of the impugned order , in default, 10% interest, as the order speaks, will carry from the date of the impugned order till full realization.
2. Pay litigation cost of Rs.1000/-to the Respondents/Complainants within the said period.
3. The Respondents/complainants were given liberty to recover the amounts by filing Execution Proceedings, if the Appellant/OP fails to comply with the above direction.
The facts of the case, in brief ,are as under.
Father of the Respondents/Complainants who used to run a partnership firm jointly took a loan for an amount of Rs.5,0,4000/- from the Union Bank Of India, Parcus Road More, Burdwan,the appellant/OP Bank against an equitable mortgage of two Deeds as security.
The said loan, as claimed, with reference to their letter dt. 02/06/2010 was agreed to be settled by the Appellant/OP bank for a sum of Rs.1,64,000/-and was ultimately settled by the Appellant/OP Bank 0n payment of the said amount by the respondent/Complainant No-2, being the younger son of the said father and a Settlement Certificate dt.05/06/2010 was issued by the Appellant/OP Bank. The Appellant/OP Bank however could not return the Mortgage Deed as, according to the letter of the Appellant/OP Bank issued simultaneously with the Settlement Certificate, the said Deeds were not readily traceable.
The Respondents/Complainants then, being aggrieved, with a view to finding remedy to their grievance, filed the Complaint Case before the Ld. District Forum which the impugned judgment and order relates to.
Heard the Ld. Advocates of both the parties. The Ld. Advocate on behalf of the appellant/OP Bank submitted that the father of the Respondents/Complainants, since died on 05/03/2013, was the person who actually mortgaged the deeds for taking the loan from the Appellant/Op Bank. The loan Account was closed after the loan being settled between the Bank and the Debtor on payment of Rs.1,64,000/-as against the total loan amount of Rs.5,04,000/- and Settlement Certificate dt.06/06/2010 was accordingly issued by the Appellant/OP bank.
The Ld. Advocate contended further that during life time of the father of the Respondents/complainants, his father filed one partition suit 30/1999/289/1995 involving the subject property which was decreed on contest against the father of the Respondents/Complainants and the plaintiff, being brother of the said father of the Respondents/complainants, was ordered to be entitled to get a decree of partition in respect of the half share of the said property.
It was submitted that the Mortgaged Deeds were submitted to the court of Ld. Civil Judge (Sr. Division) 1st. Additional Court, Burdwan in connection with the said Civil Suit. It needed time to recover the said Deeds from the said court in compliance of the order dated 21/05/14 of the Ld. District Forum. The actual mortgagor, since deceased, the Bank found it difficult to return the Deeds in absence of the specific and speaking order of the District Forum as to whom the Deeds in question were to be returned. The Appellant/Op Bank, as the Ld. Advocate contended, is now ready to return the Deeds provided it gets a specific direction as to the person to whom the Deeds are to be returned.
The Respondents/Complainants, as the Ld. Advocate further contended, have now become active in getting return of the Deeds, when there were no such activities on their part during the lifetime of their father. The sole intention of the Respondents/Complainants, as the Ld. Advocate continued, is to derive larger benefits at the cost of the Appellant/O.P. Bank.
In the above circumstances, the Ld. Advocate prayed for setting aside the impugned judgment and order.
Heard the Ld. Advocate on behalf of the Respondents/Complainants. It was submitted that the father of the respondents/Complainants and his brother actually took the loan from the appellant/OP Bank. The father of the Respondents/complainants died leaving behind the Respondents/Complainants as his legal heirs.
It was contended that the Respondents/Complainants, being the legal heirs of their father, actually repaid the loan amount and therefore, were entitled to get back the Deeds in question.
It was submitted that they have not got any compensation in terms of the order passed by the Ld. District Forum and prayed for payment of compensation of Rs.5,00,000/-with interest @10% per annum for the additional harassment and agony caused by the Appellant/OP by filing the instant Appeal without any reason.
Perused the papers on record. It appears that in the impugned order, the Appellant/OP was directed to find out the Deeds only which was diligently complied with by the Appellant/OP, but since the impugned order was not specific as to whom the Deeds were to be returned, the Appellant/OP has reasonably abstained from handing over the Deeds to the Respondents/Complainants.
The Bank is now ready to return the Deeds in questions to the Respondents/Complainants as they, being the legal heirs of their father, the principal Mortgagor, actually paid the Settled amount of loan and ensured that the loan Account in the Appellant/OP Bank is closed.
Having regard to the circumstances aforesaid, there seems to be no fault on the part of the Appellant/ OP Bank so far as the question of returning the Deeds is concerned.
It is, therefore, ordered that the Appeal be allowed in part. The order of the ld. District forum is modified as under.
The Appellant/OP Bank shall return the Mortgage Deeds in question to the Respondents/Complainants within 45 days from the date of the instant order, failing which the Appellant Bank will pay Rs.10,000/- to the Respondent/Complainant. The other directions of the Ld. District Forum are set aside. The Appeal is thus disposed of.
