Date of filing: 13.10.2020                                                                 Date of disposal: 28.09.2021

Complainant:              Sahar Ali Sekh @ Sk. Sahar Ali, S/o. Akbar Ali Sekh, residing at Bajenaohati, Kuchut, Amadpur, PO> & PS: Memari, District: Purba Bardhaman, PIN – 713 154.

- V E R S U S -

Opposite Party:  1.      Golok Cold Storage, having its office at Memari, PO. & PS: Memari, District: Purba bardhaman, PIN – 713 146

                            2.     The Manager, having its office at Memari, PO. & PS: Memari, District: Purba bardhaman, PIN – 713 146

                            3.     The Pradhan, Amadpur Gram Panchayat, having its office at Amadpur, PO. & PS: Memari, District: Purba Bardhaman, PIN – 713 154.

Present:

Hon’ble Member: Smt. Nivedita Ghosh.

Hon’ble Member: Sri Sailaranjan Das.

Appeared for the Complainant:                              Ld. Advocate Devdas Rudra.

Appeared for the Opposite Party Nos. 1, 2 & 3:  None (ex parte).

J U D G E M E N T

The Instant Consumer Complaint is taken up for hearing ex parte. O.P. Nos.1 to 3 were duly served with the petition but non appeared. On 11^th December, 2020 one Srimanta Ghosh appeared in person on behalf of O.P. No.2 but thereafter none appeared for any of the O.Ps. Therefore, the matter is taken up for hearing ex parte.

The brief facts of the case are that the complainant had deposited 120 bags of potatoes (each bag containing 50kg potatoes) of the O.P. Nos.1 and 2 on 15^th and 16^th March, 2020. The potato was deposited in the cold storage for a period up to 30^th November 2020 but when the complainant went to take delivery of his potatoes in the last week of June 2020, the O.P. did not handover the packets containing the potatoes. No reason for non-delivery was given to the complainant. However, after a month O.P. No.2 informed the complainant that they were not delivering the potatoes as per the request made by the Pradhan, Amadpur Gram Panchayat (i.e., O.P. No.3).

The complainant sent a legal notice to the O.P. Nos.1 & 2 on 29.08.2020 with a request to deliver the potatoes to the complainant as per challan/bond. On 22.09.2020, the O.Ps delivered 16 packets of potato to the complainant on payment of applicable charges amounting to Rs. 1084=00. Being aggrieved thereby, the instant Consumer Complaint has been filed. We have heard the Ld. Counsel for the complainant and perused the relevant records.  As per available record, it is a fact that the complainant had deposited 120 packets of potatoes to the O.P. Nos.1 & 2. It appears that under the instruction of O.P. No.3, the O.P. Nos.1 & 2 declined to deliver the potatoes to complainant. Pradhan of Amadpur Gram Panchayat does not have any power, whatsoever, to instruct the O.P. Nos.1 & 2 to deny delivery of the goods deposited by the complainant. The O.Ps were never under obligation to carry out the order or direction issued by someone who has no power to issue such instruction. The O.Ps are under legal obligation to handover the products deposited with them in good faith. Therefore the O.P. Nos.1 & 2 acted illegally and there is no doubt that the complainant suffered financially and mentally.

Hence it is,

 O r d e r e d

that the Consumer Complaint being No. 126/2020 be and the same allowed ex parte against the OP Nos. 1,2 & 3. The O.P. Nos.1 & 2 is directed to return 104 (one hundred and four) packets of potatoes (each packet containing 50 Kgs) to the complainant within 30 (thirty) days from the date of this order, failing which, the OP Nos. 1 & 2 shall be liable to pay Rs. 1,82,000=00 (Rs. One lac eighty two thousand) only to the complainant towards cost of potatoes within 60 (sixty) days from the date of this order, in default, the amount will carry penal interest @7% per annum for the default period. The OP Nos. 1& 2 are also directed to pay Rs. 20,000=00 (Rs. Twenty thousand) only as compensation for the financial loss incurred by the complainant and Rs. 3,000=00 (Rs. Three thousand) only as litigation cost within 60 (sixty) days from the date of this order, failing which, the complainant is at liberty to put the order in execution as per provisions of law.

            Let plain copies of this order be supplied to the parties free of cost as per provisions of law.

Dictated & Corrected by me:                                                          

         (Sailaranjan Das)                                                              

      Member

 DCDRC, Purba Bardhaman

                                            (Sailaranjan Das)                                      (Nivedita Ghosh)

                                                        Member                                                   Member

                       DCDRC, Purba Bardhaman                     DCDRC, Purba Bardhaman