Chandigarh

DF-I

CC/257/2016

Sangat Rai Kapur - Complainant(s)

Versus

Blue Dart Express Ltd Courier Service - Opp.Party(s)

In Person

30 Sep 2016

ORDER

DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL FORUM-I, U.T. CHANDIGARH

============

Consumer Complaint  No	:	CC/257/2016
Date  of  Institution	:	18/04/2016
Date   of   Decision	:	30/09/2016

 

 

 

 

 

Sangat Rai Kapur S/o Late Sh. Goverdhan Dass Kapur, r/o H.No.2051, Sector 44-C, Chandigarh.

 …………… Complainant.

VERSUS

 

(1)  Blue Dart Express Ltd. Courier Service, SCO 147-148, Sector 9-C, Madhya Marg, Chandigarh.

 

(2)  Blue Dart Express Ltd., SCO No.270, Sector 14, Panchula (Haryana).

 

(3)  Blue Dart Express Ltd., Regional Office [North], 4^th Floor, Elegance Tower, Plot No.8, Non-Hierarchical Commercial Centre Jasola, New Delhi – 110025.

 

……………  Opposite Parties

 

BEFORE:    DR.MANJIT SINGH            PRESIDENT

           MRS.SURJEET KAUR           MEMBER

           SH.SURESH KUMAR SARDANA    MEMBER

 

For Complainant	:	Sh. Sangat Rai Kapur, Complainant in person.
For Opposite Parties	:	Sh. Satyaveer Singh, Advocate.

 

PER SURJEET KAUR, MEMBER

 

 

          The factual matrix in epigrammatic form of the present Complaint are that the daughter of the Complainant Ms. Upasna Kapur who is based at Mumbai sent a courier to the Complainant through Mumbai Office of the Opposite Parties on 28.11.2015 containing one Petro Card issued by Bharat Petroleum Ltd. as provided to her by her employer being part of one of the perks enjoyed by her by payment of necessary charges. When the Complainant did not receive any intimation from the Opposite Parties regarding the consignment, he checked the delivery status of the packet and was shocked to know that the same has been allegedly delivered on 30.11.2015. On confronting, the delivery boy of the Opposite Parties namely Vishal informed that the packet was put in the letter box at the residence of the Complainant since there was no one in the house to receive the same. It has been alleged that the said Vishal, representative of the Opposite Parties neither informed about his visit to the place of Complainant by leaving any written message nor any call was ever received over phone on the contact number of the Complainant on 30.11.2015. It has been averred that as on 28.11.2015 there was a credit balance of more than Rs.20,000/- in the petro card issued by the employer of the daughter of the Complainant and for the aforesaid fault on the part of the Opposite Parties, he could not utilize the said amount. Eventually, the Complainant wrote a number of e-mails to the Opposite Parties (Annexure C-1 to C-6) narrating the sequence of events with a request to either trace the packet or to compensate him for the loss caused by their sheer negligence, but inspite of lame excuses, nothing positive could come out. With the cup of woes brimming, the Complainant has filed the instant consumer complaint, alleging that the aforesaid acts amount to deficiency in service and unfair trade practice on the part of the Opposite Parties.

 

2.      Notice of the complaint was sent to Opposite Parties seeking their version of the case.

 

3.      Opposite Parties, in their joint reply, while admitting the basic facts of the case have pleaded that the Shipment in question was booked with them by the Future Value Retail Ltd., under an agreement signed between them and the Future Value Retail on 31.12.2009 (Annexure-B). The dispute regarding delivery of any product is to be governed as per limited liability terms of the aforesaid Agreement and only Future Value Retail Ltd. has a right to raise any claim, if any, being the consumer for the answering Opposite Parties and the Complainant has no relation with them (OPs) at all. It has been submitted that the Shipment was booked by Future Value Retail Ltd. vide airway bill dated 28.11.2015 which was picked up from Mumbai for delivery to the Consignee on Chandigarh address, provided by the Future Value Retail Ltd. to the Opposite Parties. The said Shipment was delivered on 30.11.2015 in Chandigarh on the address provided and a copy of the system generated proof of delivery is annexed as Annexure-C. All other allegations made in the Complaint have been denied and pleading that there was no deficiency in service on their part, Opposite Parties have prayed for dismissal of the complaint.

 

4.      Parties were permitted to place their respective evidence on record, in support of their contentions.

 

5.      We have heard the Complainant in person and learned counsel for the Opposite Parties and have perused the record.

 

6.      The sole grouse of the Complainant is that one Petro Card, issued by Bharat Petroleum Ltd., which was sent by his daughter for him, through Opposite Parties, from Mumbai on 28.11.2015, could not be received by him and the same was lost due to the fault of the Opposite Parties. As per the allegation of the Complainant, the said Petro Card had a credit balance of more than Rs.20,000/-, which he could not utilize due the negligence of the Opposite Parties. Annexure C-1 to C-6 are the various e-mail communications written by the Complainant to the Opposite Parties with the request to trace the packet containing the Petro Card or to compensate him for the loss caused.

 

7.      The stand taken by the Opposite Parties is that the disputed shipment was booked with them by Future Value Retail Ltd. on 28.11.2015 under an Agreement between them and the Future Value Retail Ltd. on 31.12.2009 (Annexure-B). Therefore, any dispute concerning delivery of any product is to be governed as per the limited liability terms of the said Agreement and only Future Value Retail Ltd. has a right to raise any claim, if any.

 

8.      Learned Counsel for the Opposite Parties urged that the disputed Petro Card which is claimed to be lost was not in the name of the Complainant, but his daughter. Moreover, neither the Complainant nor her daughter paid any consideration to the Opposite Parties. Therefore, the Complainant is not the consumer of the Opposite Parties. We are impressed with the same, in as much as, the Opposite Parties have no relation with the Complainant and therefore, there is no contractual liability of the Opposite Parties against the Complainant. The present Complaint, therefore, deserves its dismissal on this score. A careful perusal of Annexure-C, which is a Shipment detail, placed on record by the Opposite Parties, indicates that the name of the Shipper was Future Value Retail Ltd. Furthermore, a perusal of Annexure-B, which is the Customer Contract Form, it is also having mention of contract between Future Value Retail Ltd. and the Opposite Parties. Indisputably, the daughter of the Complainant had booked the consignment with Future Value Retail Ltd. and the said Company only had the contractual liability with Complainant. Interestingly, the Complainant has not impleaded the said Future Value Retail Ltd. as a party in the present Complaint with whom he has cause of action, if any. The present Complaint of the Complainant is therefore bad for non-joinder of necessary parties. The Complainant should have impleaded the Future Value Retail Ltd. as necessary parties for proper adjudication of the lis.

 

9.      Taking into consideration all the facts and circumstances narrated above, we have no hesitation to hold that there is no deficiency in service or unfair trade practice on the part of the Opposite Parties. As such, the present Complaint is devoid of merit and the same is hereby dismissed, leaving the parties to bear their own costs.      

 

10.      Certified copy of this order be communicated to the parties, free of charge. After compliance file be consigned to record room.

 

Announced

30^th September, 2016                                         

Sd/-

[DR.MANJIT SINGH]

PRESIDENT

                  

                              Sd/-  

[SURJEET KAUR]

MEMBER   

 

Sd/-                    

[SURESH KUMAR SARDANA]                                                                                                   

“Dutt”                                                                           MEMBER