Punjab

Ludhiana

EA/16/189

vipin Kumar - Complainant(s)

Versus

L&T Finance Limited - Opp.Party(s)

MS Sethi adv

06 Mar 2023

ORDER

DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION, LUDHIANA.

                             Execution Application No:189 dated 04.08.2016                                                           Date of decision: 06.03.2023. 

 

Vipan Kumar s/o Madan Lal r/o H.No.3, Ambedkar Nagar, Ludhiana.             

 

                                                                             Decree holder/complainant.

                                                Versus

1.L & T Finance Limited, SCO-10-11-12, 2^nd Floor, Feroze Gandhi Market, Ludhiana 141001 through its authorized signatory.

2.L & T Finance Limited, City 2, Plot No.177, Vidyanagari Marg, C.S.T.Road, Kalina, Santacruz (E), Mumbai-4000978.

Judgment Debtors/Opposite parties

Execution Application U/s 27 of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986.

QUORUM:

SH. SANJEEV BATRA, PRESIDENT

SH.JASWINDER SINGH, MEMBER

MS. MONIKA BHAGAT, MEMBER

 

COUNSEL FOR THE PARTIES:

For decree holder/complainant                   :         Sh.M.S.Sethi, Advocate

For judgment debtors/opposite parties       :         Sh.Ashok Kumar, Advocate

 

ORDER

PER SANJEEV BATRA, PRESIDENT

1.                This order will dispose of the present execution application No.189 of 2016 filed by the decree holder/complainant Sh.Vipan Kumar whereby he sought the payment of penalty amount of Rs.89,600/- calculated @Rs.200/- per day w.e.f.31.03.2015 till 21.07.2016 and has referred to the non-compliance of the order dated 31.03.2015 passed by the Learned Predecessor of this Commission in Execution Application No.46 of 19.02.2015 and decided on 31.03.2015.

2.                The point for determination arose as to whether the complainant/decree holder is entitled to the penalty amount of Rs.89,600/- and if so to what extent.

3.                In order to effectively and conclusively decide the point of issue, perusal of followings orders extracted from the attached files is necessary. The relevant observations in the orders are reproduced as under:-

“i)Order dated 29.09.2014 passed in CC No.198 of 25.02.2014, vide which, the complaint f0iled by the complainant was allowed with the following observations:-

“In view of the above discussion, we hereby allow this complaint and as a result, direct the Ops to handover the original registration certificate of the vehicle along with requisite documents for transfer of ownership to the complainant and further, Ops are directed to pay Rs.20,000/-(twenty thousand only) as compensation to the complainant on account of mental pain, agony and harassment suffered by him and Rs.2000/-(Two thousand only) as litigation costs to the complainant. Compliance of order be made within 30 days from the date of receipt of copy of this order. Copy of the order be made available to the parties free of costs. File be indexed and consigned to record room.”

 

ii)Order dated 31.03.2015 passed in Execution Application No.46 of 19.02.2015 is reproduced as under:-

“Sh.Ashok Kumar Advocate has filed power of attorney duly signed by Sh.Arun K.Ozas attorney of L & T Finance along with copy of power of attorney duly executed by AGM & Head –Litigation L&T Finance Limited. Same be placed on file. Sh.Ashok Kumar has also filed demand draft bearing No.541145 dated 05.03.2015 of Rs.22,000/- favour Vipan Kumar in compliance to the order for payment of compensation and litigation cost and has further requested for grant a long adjournment to prepare the registration certificate of the vehicle. On the other hand, Sh.M.S.Sethi, counsel for the applicant stated that today decree holder has not come present but specific direction be issued to the JD to prepare the registration certificate and to hand over the decree holder within a specific period. The cheque be placed on file and same be released to the decree holder against due receipt and verification. The JD is directed to hand over the registration certificate of the vehicle duly prepared by the concerned District Transport Office within a period of 60 days from today, failing which the JD shall be liable to pay a penalty of Rs.200/- per day till the date of delivery of the registration certificate of the vehicle. The present execution application stands adjourned sine die for the time being till the delivery of registration certificate but however the parties are at liberty to get the same revived as and when so required or the registration certificate is not delivered to the decree holder within a specified time. File be consigned to record room.”

 

4.                In order to effect the compliance of the aforesaid order dated 31.03.2025, certain documents were required to be submitted by the complainant/decree holder for the transfer of the ownership in his name. Accordingly, the JDs had filed a miscellaneous application No.53 of 21.05.2015. The said application was finally decided on 24.01.2017 by the Learned Predecessor of this Commission with the following observations:-

“Heard on application for non supply of necessary documents. This application is simply for handing over of requisite documents for transfer of ownership of vehicle in name of complainant/decree holder. Those documents sought by L&T Finance so that compliance of the orders dated 29.09.2014 passed in consumer complaint No.198 of 25.02.2014 titled as Vipan Kumar Vs L&T Finance Limited may be done. As per those orders, Ops were to hand over the original registration certificate along with requisite documents for transfer of ownership to complainant. Admittedly amount of Rs.22,000/- has already been received. RC even has been handed over as revealed by statements recorded on 22.07.2016 of counsel for parties. As RC has been handed over and as such, application for seeking requisite documents being in fructuous and same is hereby dismissed. However, separate claim qua non compliance of orders of 31.03.2015 has been filed and that application will be separately considered on merits. This application be consigned to record room.”

5.                It can be evident from the proceedings that JDs/applicants were unable to get the transfer effected due to non-submission of the documents. Firstly, they got the RC prepared in the name of one Onkar Singh the previous owner but the complainant/decree holder insisted that the RC must be transferred in his name only. Admittedly, the complainant/decree holder has received the relevant documents on 22.07.2016. Perusal of the proceedings in MA No.52 of 2015 shows that delay in handing over the documents cannot be solely attributed to the JDs. Certainly the complainant/decree holder also took time to supply the documents. JDs/applicants had prepared the documents in the name of Onkar Singh the previous owner and submitted the same in the Court on 07.12.2015 and substantially complied with the order. Further, proceedings were extended at the instance of complainant/decree holder who wanted to RC should be in his name. It has been noticed that there was no specific directions in the order dated 31.03.2015 passed in EA No.46 of 2015 with regard to the fact that in whose name the said RC was to be transferred. It is settled law that act of the court should be prejudice no-one. Further, the maxim "Actus Curiae neminem gravabit", which means that the act of the Court shall prejudice no-one, becomes applicable in such a case. In such a situation the Court is under an obligation to undo the wrong done to a party by the act of the Court. So, it will be just and proper, if the JDs are directed to pay Rs.200/- per day to the decree holder w.e.f.01.06.2015 to 07.12.2015 within a period of 30 days from the date of receipt of copy of this order, failing which, the decree holder will be entitled to interest @8% per annum from the date of this order till the realization of the amount. As such, the present execution application stands disposed accordingly. Copies of order be supplied to the parties free of costs. File be indexed and consigned to record room.

 

(Monika Bhagat)             (Jaswinder Singh)      (Sanjeev Batra)                        Member                     Member                      President      

Announced in Open Commission.

Dated:06.03.2023.

Gurpreet Sharma