Sri Utpal Kumar Bhattacharya, Member

Instant Appeal u/s 15 of the C.P Act, 1986 has been filed by the Appellant/complainant challenging the judgment and order dated 06.07.2017 passed by the Ld. District Forum, Kolkata Unit—II in Complaint Case No. 243 of 2017 dismissing the complaint with the observation that the same was not maintainable on the ground of pecuniary jurisdiction before the Ld. District Forum.

The fact, in brief, leading to the instant controversy was that the Tata Indigo, no refusal taxi of contract carriage No. WB-04G-2288 owned by the Appellant/Complainant was insured with Respondent/OP No. 1. Said vehicle had met with an accident within the validity period of the insurance policy. The Respondent/OP No. 1, on receipt of the information of the accident, engaged the surveyor to assess and ascertain the loss sustained by the insured vehicle due to the damage reported to have sustained by the same.

The surveyor, in his report, had expressed an adverse observation against sanction of the cost for repairing of the vehicle as the driver of the vehicle behind wheel at the relevant point of time was not having valid driving licence.

The Appellant/Complainant, being aggrieved with the impugned judgment and order filed the Complaint Case of a total claim of Rs. 17,50,000/- as per break up shown for the memo of Appeal at para 8 (continuation) running page 13. Ld. District Forum observed the complaint to be out of pecuniary jurisdiction of the Ld. District Forum as per provision of the Act as the complaint cost was exceeding Rs. 20,00,000/-. Being dissatisfied with the said order, the Appellant/Complainant filed the instant Appeal.

We heard all sides.

The Ld. Advocate appearing on behalf of the Appellant/Complainant submitted that the total valuation was assessed by the Ld. District Forum taking into consideration the cost of the vehicle amounting to Rs. 6,34,727/- which the Appellant/Complainant had never claimed as it would reveal from the prayer part of the complaint. Sticking to the claim of Rs. 17,50,000/- as was shown at para VIII (continuation) at page 13 in the memo of Appeal, the Ld. Advocate continued that the claim was very much within the pecuniary jurisdiction of the Ld. District Forum.

The Ld. Advocate appearing on behalf of the Respondent/OP No. 1, on the contrary, submitted that the complaint valuation was rightly assessed by the Ld. District Forum. Other Respondents did not submit any thing at the time of hearing of the case.

Since the case was not heard on merit, we found that the sole debate had centered around only on pecuniary jurisdiction of the Ld. District Forum which our observation was to be restricted within.

In the above context, we would like to refer to the decision of the Hon’ble High Court, Calcutta in [Budge Budge Company Limited—Vs—National Insurance Company Limited and Anr.] wherein while deciding on the moot point of the issue, the Hon’ble High Court observed, “It is, therefore, clear that it is the value of claim which determines the pecuniary jurisdiction of the State Commission. In the present case the total claim of the complainant/petitioner if taken together does not exceed one crore.” This Bench, in recent past, based on the said observation had resolved some important issues and is of the opinion of sticking to the same guideline on the instant occasion also.

The complaint value, in view of the above guideline, should be determined as Rs.17,50,000/-. The same, therefore, was within the limits of pecuniary jurisdiction of the Ld. District Forum. Since the complaint was decided not on merit, we abstain from recording any comment on merit of the complaint and intend to send the case on remand to the Ld. District Forum for hearing the same on merit afresh.

Hence,

Ordered

that the Appeal be and the same stands allowed in part. The impugned judgment and order stands set aside. The case be remanded to the Ld. District Forum with the direction to hear and dispose of the same on merit passing a reasoned order.

The parties are directed to appear before the Ld. District Forum on 12.09.2019.