ADISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL FORUM-I, LUCKNOW

CASE No.60 of 2012

       Prema Chikan Handicraft,

       House No.320/39, Shankri Tola,

       Chowk, Lucknow.

       Through its Proprietor/Manager, 2,

        Ankit Khare aged about 28 yrs.,

        S/o Late Sri Gopal Sharan Khare,

        R/o H.No.320/39, Shankari Tola,

        Chowk, Lucknow, the Proprietor/Manager.

                                                                    ……Complainant

Versus

1. Managing Director, First Flight Couriers Ltd.

15/16, National House, Chandivali Junction,

                       Saki Vihar Road, Andheri (East), Mumbai-4000072.

2. Branch Manager,

First Flight Couriers Ltd.

602, Crystal Mall Bani Park,

3. The Manager/Authorised Signatory,

First Flight Couriers Ltd.

Adjacent Republic Mall, Near Polytechnic Crossing,

Gomti Nagar, Lucknow.

                                                                              .......Opp. Parties

Present:-

Sri Vijai Varma, President.

Smt. Anju Awasthy, Member.

JUDGMENT

This complaint is filed by the Complainant against the OPs for directing the OPs to deliver the goods of 4 packets amounting to Rs.2,40,000.00 of chikan articles and if articles are missing then OPs to pay Rs.2,40,000.00, damages of Rs.20,000.00 per month and cost of the litigation.

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The case in brief of the Complainant is that he is doing business under the name and style of the Prema Chikan and Handicraft. He booked goods from Jaipur to Lucknow on 23.10.2011 in 4 packets containing chikan clothes valued at Rs.2,40,000.00 by paying a sum of Rs.1,225.00 to the OPs but the goods were not delivered at Lucknow despite Complainant contacting the OPs regarding the delivery of the aforesaid articles. The Complainant sent a notice to the OPs but still no delivery was made, hence the OPs have committed deficiency in service and caused financial loss to the Complainant, therefore this complaint for compensation etc.

          The OPs have filed the WS wherein it is mainly submitted that a consignment was booked in 4 packets to be delivered from Jaipur to Lucknow the value of which was Rs.24,000.00, the cost of 1 packet being Rs.6,000.00. It is wrong on the part of the complainant to say that the value of each packet was Rs.60,000.00. The goods were not insured. Out of the 4 packets one pakcet was lost in transit for which an FIR was lodged by the driver Sri Vimal Kumar. Out of the 4 packets 3 packets have been delivered to the Complainant on 01.11.2011 and only 1 packet could not be delivered to the Complainant’s firm but the Complainant concealed this fact from the Forum. The Complainant has filed this case on the basis of imaginary loss with the intention of extorting money from the OPs, hence it should be dismissed with costs.

          The Complainant has filed his affidavit with 6 annexures. The OPs have filed the affidavit of Sri Pawan Kumar Singh, Manager, Personal and Administration, First Flight Couriers Ltd. and 2 annexures with the WS. The parties have filed the written arguments.

          Heard Counsel for the parties and perused the entire record.

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          Now it is to be seen as to whether the Complainant has lost any packet of the consignment because of the negligence of the OPs and hence the OPs have committed deficiency in service or not and whether the Complainant is entitled to the compensation or not?

          Learned Counsel for the OPs has firstly raised the objection that the Complainant Sri Ankit Khare has no locus standi to file this complaint as in the consignment note t the consignee is Prema Khare but we do not find any merit in this argument as Sri Ankit Khare is the proprietor of Prema Chikan Handicraft who had booked the consignment to be delivered from Jaipur to Lucknow. It is to be noted that the address of Prema Chikan Handicrafts is the same which is noted as the address of the consignee. It is not material as to in whose name the consignment was booked when the address of the consignee is the address of the person to whom the consignment is to be delivered. Therefore, it is concluded that the Complainant who is the proprietor of Prema Chikan Handicrafts has the locus standi to file this complaint.

Now, we come to the main point as to whether the Complainant has lost any packet of the consignment because of the negligence of the OPs and hence the OPs have committed deficiency in service or not and whether the Complainant is entitled to the compensation or not? The Complainant had booked 4 packets of chikan clothes with the OP to be delivered from Jaipur to Lucknow as is evident from the copy of the consignment note annexure 1 filed with the affidavit of Sri Ankit Khare. The contention of the Complainant is that all the 4 packets were not delivered whereas the stand of the OPs is that 3 packets were delivered but only 1 packet remained to be delivered as it was lost in the transit. From the letters sent by the Complainant Sri Ankit Khare copies of which are filed as annexure 2 and 3 it is clear that 3 packets were received at the office of the OPs but the

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Complainant wanted all the 4 packets to be delivered to him. Hence, it is clear that 3 packets were received at Lucknow office of the OPs but the Complainant was adamant in taking all the 4 packets together. There does not appear to be any plausible explanation as to why the Complainant did not take the delivery of the 3 packets even if all the 4 packets were not received at the office of the OPs as the Complainant could have taken the delivery of the 3 packets and asked for the compensation for the missing 4^th packet, therefore the OPs are only responsible for the loss of the 4^th packet in transit as they themselves admitted the loss of 1 packet in transit, therefore there is clear cut deficiency in service on the part of the OPs so far as loss of one packet out of the consignment of 4 packets is concerned not, therefore the Complainant is entitled to compensation for the loss of one packet.

          Now the question arises as to how much compensation the Complainant is entitled to get for the loss of one packet of the consignment. In this regard, it is argued by the learned Counsel for the Complainant that each packet was valued at Rs.60,000.00 and therefore the Complainant is entitled to get Rs.60,000.00 for the loss of 1 packet but learned Counsel for the OPs argues that the value of the packets was only Rs.6,000.00 per packet and therefore the Complainant is entitled to only Rs.6,000.00 as there appears to be some over-writing in the consignment note where the figure of Rs.6,000.00 was made as Rs.60,000.00. In the consignment note the value of the goods is shown as Rs.60,000.00 and there is no justification in the argument advanced by the learned Counsel for the OPs that there has been over writing on the amount of declared value which was only Rs.6,000.00 and made it to be Rs.60,000.00 as from the consignment note there appears to be many over-writings which have not been challenged by the OPs. Therefore, it is clear that the declared value was Rs.60,000.00 written on the consignment note but

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we do not find any merit in the argument advanced by the learned Counsel for the Complainant that the value of one packet was Rs.60,000.00 and therefore the total value of 4 packets was Rs.2,40,000.00 because there is no mention of the fact in the consignment note that the value of one packet was Rs.60,000.00. In fact the declared value is shown as Rs.60,000.00 and that should be with regard to the consignment sent which included all the 4 packets and therefore the value of one packet comes to Rs.15,000.00 only and not Rs.60,000.00. The Complainant therefore is entitled to only Rs.15,000.00 for the loss of one packet with interest. Since the Complainant appears to have also been harassed in this regard, hence he is also entitled to compensation as well as cost of the litigation.

ORDER

          The complaint is partly allowed. The OPs are jointly and severally directed to pay Rs.15,000.00 (Rupees Fifteen Thousand Only) with 9% interest from the date of filing of the case till the final payment is made to the Complainant.

The OPs are also directed to pay Rs.5,000.00 (Rupees Five Thousand Only) as compensation and Rs.3,000.00 (Rupees Three Thousand Only) as cost of the litigation to the Complainant.

The compliance of the order is to be made within a month.

  (Anju Awasthy)                              (Vijai Varma)

          Member                                         President    

Dated:   11  January, 2016