DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL FORUM: BHADRAK

Dated the 20th day of June, 2018

                                                                                                                              Present 1. Shri Raghunath Kar, President

                                                                                                                                          2. Shri Basanta Kumar Mallick, Member

                                                                                                                                          3. Afsara Begum, Member

C.D Case No. 32 of 2016

Baba Ganeswar SHG of Vill: Khopsahi

Po: Bamkura                                                                                                         

Ps: Dhusuri

Dist: Bhadrak, Represented by its Secretary & President namely

1. Smt. Mauli Sahu, Secretary

W/o: Gokulananda Sahu

           and

2. Smt. Kausalya Sahu, President

W/o: Krupasindhu Sahu

Both are of above mentioned address  

                                                        ……………………. Complainant

            (Versus)

 Branch Manager,

 UCO Bank, Dhusuri Branch

 At/Po/Ps: Dhusuri

 Dist: Bhadrak

                                                    …………………………..Opp. Parties

Advocate for Complainant: Sri Chandra Sekhara Sahoo & Associates

Advocate for OP: Sri Chittaranjan Nath

Date of hearing: 09.08.2017

Date of order: 20.06.2018

SRI BASANTA KUMAR MALLICK, MEMBER

This dispute arises out of a complaint filed by the complainant alleging deficiency of service and unfaire trade practice.

The facts of the complaint are to the effect that the complainants are the office bearers of Baba Ganeswar SHG holding the office of secretary & president who are legally competent to sue or to be sued on behalf of Baba Ganeswar Self Help Group consisting of 11 (eleven) members including the complainants. This S.H.G is the outcome of Women Empowerment Programme of both Central & State Govt. with a view to bring the women to main stream and also to make them self reliant. This group was organized for savings of a nominal amount by each and every members of the group in every month in any financial institution/Bank which will be subsequently linked with credit and with the credit support of Banks and other financial institutions, the members would be capable of taking up various activities for earning purpose which would help them to augment financial deficity of the family to a certain extent. Accordingly the complainant’s SHG has opened a deposit account with OP Bank and also availed loan of Rs 70,000/- in two phases on 30.01.2012 and 06.02.2012. The loan so availed by the complainants was utilized in different activities and the members of the group wanted to start repayment of the loan in monthly installments and accordingly contacted the officer (Field officer) of the OP Bank who was in charge of Micro Finance wing of the Branch. As the loan account number was not known to the group members, the complainants enquired to know the loan account number from the F.O of OP Bank who wrote down the loan account number on the inner back page of deposit passbook as 12210600800125 and accordingly the complainants went on depositing the loan installments in every month till the April, 2013. Consequent upon transfer of the said filed officer and joining of successor in the said post, it is detected that the loan account number as was given by earlier field officer was not of complainants and the amount wrongly deposited in the said loan account by the complainants amounting to Rs 17,795/- immediately be reversed and be credited to the loan account of Baba Ganeswar SHG. Simultaneously the amount of interest charged by the OP Bank on the amount already paid be revised and deducted from loan outstanding against the complainants despite repeated approach and sincere requests of the complainants, the OP Bank did not take any step to credit the amount of Rs 17,795/- to the loan account of the complainants. When the OP turned a deaf year to the grievances, complainants made a series of written submissions on dt. 01.06.2015, 21.09.2015 and on dt.31.10.2015 which were also not responded by the OP Bank. Finally the complainants served a notice upon the OP Bank through their advocates requesting to resolve the issue within a reasonable time preferably within 15 days failing which the complainants shall adopt the legal recourse to get the issue resolved. Despite all above attempts made by the complainants when the OP kept itself silent over the issue, finding no other way, complainants filed this dispute for adjudication praying for a direction to the OP Bank to credit the amount to the loan account of Baba Ganeswar SHG and to reverse the amount of interest already charged on the amount of loan already paid to the credit of their loan account.

OP resisted the claim of the complainants and contested the case. In the written version so submitted, OP has questioned the maintainability of the case as the O.Ps are not found deficient in providing proper service to the complainants and the complainants have not come to the Forum with clean hands. The OP has denied all the allegations made in the complaint and prayed the Forum to dismiss the case due to devoid of merit.

We have gone through the complaint, written version, material evidences on record and observed as detailed below.

Admittedly the complaints are the office bears of Baba Ganeswar SHG and discharging the function of secretary and president of the said group. It is also an admitted fact that the complainants have availed credit support from the OP Bank for group activities. Other than the above mentioned facts, all other allegations have been disputed.

1. The claim of the complainants are to the effect that they have deposited a sum of Rs 17,795/- in their loan account bearing No- 12210600800125 starting from July 2012 to June 2013 which is not accounted for/ credited to their loan account. When enquired, the new field officers stated that the loan account number as said by the complainants does not belong to Baba Ganeswar SHG of village Khopasahi and the actual loan account number is 122106100005040 and the transactions made in the said account does not reveal any deposit made by the complainants during the period from July, 2012 to June, 2013. The complainants exhibited the SBD passbook bearing A/c No- 007504 wherein at the inner cover page, the Ex-field officer of OP Bank in his own handwriting written the loan account number as 12210600800125 which has subsequently been cut off by the new field officer and wrote the new number. As such the complainants demanded to credit the amount of deposit to their loan account and to reverse the interest debited to their loan account.

On the other hand OP submitted that no such amount shown deposited in the loan account of Baba Ganeswar SHG and the question of crediting the amount of Rs 17,795/- and reversal of interest charged/debited to the loan account does not arise.

On perusal of case record it is observed that the complainants have furnished the counter folio of the cash deposit vouchers of OP Bank on different dates which are mentioned here under.

Moreover the complainants have also filed the loan transaction sheets/statement of loan account of both the accounts which reveal that both the accounts belong to Baba Ganeswar SHG but the address remains different Baba Ganeswar SHG bearing account No- 800125 belongs to village Patrasahi of Dhusuri where as the loan account No- 005040 of Baba Ganeswar SHG belongs to village Khopasahi. The loan account number which was noted down on the inner back page of the SB account pass book beraing No- 007504 by the field officer in position was wrong which misled the complainants to deposit the loan dues in loan account No- 800125 cannot be said as a mistake of the complainants. It is well proved that the field officer of OP Bank has given a wrong number to the said SHG Group leaders which was detected by the succeeding field officer of the OP Bank. Despite repeated requests by the group leaders, it is well proved from the loan accounts statement that the OP Bank has not taken any appropriate step to credit the amount of Rs 17,795/- deposited by the complainant to the loan account No- 005040 and the interest accrued for the matching amount is not yet reversed which amounts to negligence in duty and deficiency of service.

It cannot be denied by the OP Bank to have not received the amount from the complainants. The counter folio of the deposit vouchers furnished by the complainants are sufficient to prove that the OP Bank has received the cash at the counter from the complainant.

It is also an established and well proved fact that because of negligence of the OP Bank, the illiterate and poor group members suffered from mental agony and sustained financial loss which need to be compensated by OP Bank.

In view of the above facts and circumstances the OP is held responsible and liable to compensate the loss sustained by the complainants. Hence it is ordered;

ORDER

The complaint be and same is allowed on contest directing the OP to credit the amount of Rs 17,795/- paid by the complainants to the loan account No- 005040 of Baba Ganeswar SHG of village Khopasahi and reverse the interest accrued during the period from July, 2012 to June, 2013 for the matching amount paid by the complainants. Further the OP is directed to pay Rs 3,000/- as cost of the litigation and Rs 2,000/- as compensation for mental agony and unnecessary harassment. This order must be complied within 30 days from the date of receipt failing which additional charge @ Rs 25/- per day shall be realized from the OP from the date of order till the date of payment.

This order is pronounced in the open Forum on this day of 20^th June, 2018 under my hand and seal of the Forum.