Chandigarh

StateCommission

CC/9/2024

MR. RAMAN DOGRA - Complainant(s)

Versus

OMAXE NEW CHANDIGARH DEVELOPERS PRIVATE LIMITED, - Opp.Party(s)

SANDEEP BHARDWAJ

07 May 2024

ORDER

STATE CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION, U.T. CHANDIGARH

[Additional Bench]

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Complaint No.	:	09 of 2024
Date of Institution	:	06.02.2024
Date of Decision	:	07.05.2024

 

Mrs. Raman Dogra, aged 46 years, W/o Sh. Ajay Dogra, Resident of House No.995, Sector 7-B, Chandigarh.

……Complainant

Versus

1]      Omaxe New Chandigarh Developers Private Limited, Zonal Office: India Trade Tower, 1^st Floor, Baddi Kurali Road, New Chandigarh, Mullanpur, Distt. SAS Nagar, Punjab – 140901 through its Directors – Shalini Barathi, Bhupendra Singh, Dheeraj Agarwal and Nishal Jain.

2^nd Address:-      Registered & Corporate Office: 10, Local Shopping Complex, Kalkaji, New Delhi – 110019. 

2]      Facility Plus Estate Management Private Limited, Site Address: Flat No.723-B, Ground Floor, Omaxe Silver Birch, Omaxe New Chandigarh, Mohali, SAS Nagar, Punjab – 140901 through its Directors/Authorised Signatory, namely, Deshdeepk Arya and Bikramjit Singh Mann.

2^nd Address:-      Regd. Office at : A-1/343-B, Lawrence Road, Delhi – 110035.

3^rd Address:-      Building No.-38, First Floor, Okhla Industrial Estate, Phase-III, Okhla, Industrial Estate, South Delhi, New Delhi, Delhi, India, 110020.

…..Opposite Parties.

BEFORE: MRS. PADMA PANDEY   PRESIDING MEMBER

                PREETINDER SINGH      MEMBER

PRESENT	:	Sh. Sandeep Bhardwaj, Advocate for the Complainant.
		Sh. Arjun Sharma, Advocate for the Opposite Parties.

PER PADMA PANDEY, PRESIDING MEMBER

 

                   The facts in brief are that the complainant purchased Flat bearing No.246-G, Second Floor, measuring 1702 Sq. Ft. in the project of opposite party No.1 i.e. Silver Birch, Omaxe, New Chandigarh, SAS Nagar, Mohali, in resale from one Sh. Ankur Gupta. As per the Statement of Accounts dated 29.04.2023, Annexure C-1, the entire sale consideration against the said unit had already been cleared and nothing was due against the initial sale consideration of the said flat. An Agreement to Sell Annexure C-2 was got executed, as per which, the price of the said flat was fixed at Rs.70,00,000/-. Opposite party No.2 – Facility Plus Estate Management Pvt. Ltd. also issued No Due Certificate on 27.07.2023 vide Sr. No.FPEM/NOC/NDC-26921 for the flat in question i.e. OSBC/TYPE-A/SF/246G, Annexure C-3, wherein it was clearly mentioned that there was nothing due against CAM Charges, Electricity Charges, Club Charges. In the said No Due Certificate dated 27.07.2023, Opposite party No.2 clearly stated that “The said property has “No Dues” till the above mentioned dates against the Facility Plus Estate Management Private Limited and the company has “NO OBJECTION” if the said unit is registered in their/her favour and further transfer by them/her in favour of third party.” This NOC was released for transfer purposes only and it became the basis of the transaction in question and after issuance of this No Due Certificate, the complainant was satisfied and entered into the sale of the unit in question. After making the complete payment, Sale Agreement (Full & Final) Annexure C-4 was executed on 03.08.2023 with regard to full and final payment. Thereafter, the complainant got the Sale Deed registered in her name on 03.08.2023, Annexure C-5.  Subsequently, the complainant applied to opposite party No.1 for transfer of the flat in question in her name by paying the requisite Endorsement Fee of Rs.15,000/- + GST of Rs.2,500/- (totalling   Rs.17,500/-) vide Receipt dated 18.08.2023, Annexure C-6. It was on basis of the said documents including No Due Certificate aforesaid that the unit in question stood transferred in the record of opposite party No.1 in the name of the complainant. Thereafter, opposite party No.1 issued letter dated 18.08.2023, Annexure C-7 whereby it was intimated to the complainant that they have updated their records and asked the complainant to get the records of Opposite party No.2 updated, which was accordingly done. The complainant submitted all the documents to Opposite party No.2 and got updated its record also. Maintenance Agreement was also got executed between Opposite party No.2 and the complainant but it is averred that copy thereof has never been supplied to the complainant. Accordingly, the complainant started renovation work in the said flat. It is the grievance of the complainant that she was shocked to receive the first Invoice/Bill dated 03.08.2023, Annexure C-8, whereby Opposite party No.2 raised an illegal and arbitrary demand of Rs.62,937.16 on account of previous outstanding dues alongwith interest of Rs.18,706.00. The complainant immediately approached the Site Office of Opposite party No.2 and showed them the bill and requested them to issue the revised bill by correcting the same. However, the staff sitting in the office of Opposite party No.2 told the complainant that it would be corrected and she would not receive it in future but nothing was done. Opposite party No.2 kept on sending the bills by incorporating the said alleged illegal and arbitrary demand on account of previous outstanding dues. In subsequent Invoice/Bills dated 06.10.2023, 02.11.2023, 02.12.2023 and 02.01.2024, the previous outstanding amount was shown and in Invoice/Bill dated 02.01.2024, the previous outstanding was shown as Rs.68,037.06 and interest as Rs.32,595.00 Annexure C-9 (Colly). The complainant visited the office of Opposite party No.2 numerous times for redressal of her grievance but to no avail. Every time, it was verbally assured that from the next month, the complainant would not receive any outstanding previous dues and correct bill would be issued but nothing was done by Opposite party No.2. It has further been stated that again, to the utter pain of the complainant, during the intervening period, Opposite party No.2 disconnected the electricity connection of the flat, which was subsequently restored by giving clarification by the officials of Opposite party No.2 that it would not happen again. It was on the verbal asking of the officials of Opposite party No.2, the complainant did not make any payment till November, 2023 as the Bills were not corrected and Opposite party No.2 told the complainant to pay the amount on receipt of revised correct bill. However, when nothing fruitful came out, the complainant agitated the matter with the opposite parties vide email dated 06.11.2023 Annexure C-10 with regard to illegal and arbitrary demand of previous outstanding dues but to no avail. Opposite party No.2 vide its Email/Notice dated 19.11.2023, Annexure C-11, asked the complainant to deposit the amount of Rs.1,49,982/- as outstanding amount. This time, the complainant was shocked to know that the said illegal and arbitrary demand suddenly went up to Rs.1,49,982/-. The complainant replied to the said email of Opposite party No.2 vide her email dated 21.11.2023, Annexure C-12. The complainant also made payment of Rs.11,000/- under protest towards water, maintenance and electricity charges for the period from 03.08.2023 till the November 2023.  The illegal and arbitrary demand raised in Invoice dated 02.12.2023 was agitated by the complainant vide email dated 07.12.2023, Annexure C-13 and she made payment of Rs.3,753/- under protest towards the water, maintenance and electricity charges, which was actually due on her part. Similarly, against the Invoice/Bill dated 02.01.2024, the complainant vide email dated 07.01.2024, Annexure C-14, again agitated the matter with regard to illegal demand of previous outstanding dues and made payment of Rs.3,700.38 towards water charges, maintenance charges and electricity charges, under protest. Opposite Party No.2 sent an email/notice dated 18.01.2024, Annexure C-15, by raising the demand of illegal and arbitrary dues to Rs.1,41,187/- and asked the complainant to pay the said dues within 3 days from despatch of the said notice, failing which, they threatened to disconnect the services like electricity etc. The complainant received Invoice/Bill dated 02.02.2024, Annexure C-16, wherein the previous outstanding was shown as Rs.69,096.06 & interest thereupon as Rs.35,433.00, which issue was agitated by the complainant from the day one she received the first Invoice/Bill dated 03.08.2023. It has been averred by the complainant that the aforesaid acts of opposite parties in raising illegal and arbitrary demand of alleged previous outstanding amount in the Invoices/Bills issued from time to time starting from 03.08.2023 till 02.02.2024, despite the fact that Opposite party No.2 has already issued No Due Certificate dated 27.07.2023, at the time of purchase of the said unit, is a grave deficiency in service and unfair trade practice on the part of the opposite parties, which has brought immense physical harassment and mental agony to the complainant and her family. It has further been stated that the emails were sent by the complainant from time to time but the opposite parties did not give any specific clarification and every time, vide their email(s), they only intimated the complainant that “UPDATED”. No official of the opposite parties ever tried to contact the complainant telephonically to resolve the issue. Alleging that the aforesaid acts amount to deficiency in service and unfair trade practice on the part of the Opposite Parties, the Complainant have preferred the instant Consumer Complaints under Section 47 read along with Section 49(1) of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.

 

2]                Notice of the complaint was sent to Opposite Parties seeking their version of the case. 

 

3]                Opposite Party No.1 contested the complaint by filing its reply wherein it took certain preliminary objections to the effect that since the complainant has admittedly taken possession of the flat in question from Opposite Party No.1 and the sale deed also stood executed, therefore, the role of Opposite Party No.1 ceases to exist and the privity of contract between it and the complainant also comes to an end. It has further been stated that thus the complainant is not a consumer qua Opposite Party No.1. On merits of the case, alleging no deficiency in rendering service or unfair trade practice on its part, Opposite Party No.1 prays for dismissal of the complaint.

 

4]                Opposite Party No.2 also contested the complaint by filing its reply. While admitting the alleged demand so raised vide bill/invoice dated 03.08.2023 by it, issuance of subsequent bills raising such demand upto 02.02.2024 and the payments made by the complainant under protest, Opposite Party No.2 has stated that the said alleged demand has been withdrawn by it and the account of the complainant has been rectified and settled now. It has further been stated that the copy of maintenance agreement had been supplied to the complainant but if in any case, the complainant do not have the same, the same can be provided again. On the basis of withdrawal of demand of payment on account of previous outstanding dues, Opposite Party No.2 has pleaded no deficiency in rendering service or unfair trade practice on its part and prayed for dismissal of the complaint.

 

5]                The complainant filed separate rejoinders to the replies filed by both the Opposite Parties wherein she reiterated the averments made in the complaint and repudiated those as stated in the replies of the Opposite parties.

6]                We have heard the rival contentions of the parties and have also gone through the record of the case along with the written arguments filed by the complainant.

 

1.  

 

8]                Now coming to the merits of the case, it is significant to mention here that counsel for opposite party no.2 has fairly admitted that despite issuance of No Due Certificate dated 27.07.2023, opposite party no.2 raised demand of previous electricity charges from the complainant which she was not liable to make, yet, to wriggle out of the same, by placing reliance on Annexure OP-2/2, copy of statement of account with date 25.09.2022 - 15.02.2024,  it has been stated by him that during pendency of this consumer complaint, the account of the complainant qua previous electricity charges have been settled at its end and has been brought to Zero.  We have perused the said statement of account and found that as on 15.02.2024 the outstanding dues has been shown to be zero. Thus, it is a clear cut case of admitted deficiency in service and unfair trade practice on the part of Opposite Party No.2 i.e. Facility Plus Estate Management Pvt. Ltd. because admittedly, despite the fact that it had already issued No Due Certificate dated 27.07.2023, whereafter only, Sale Deed dated 03.08.2023 was got executed, opposite party No.2 vide Invoice dated 03.08.2023 raised the alleged illegal and arbitrary demand on account of previous outstanding dues & interest, which it kept on increasing in subsequent bills.

 

9]                It is also coming out from the record that despite repeated requests/emails having been sent by the complainant, opposite party No.2 did not pay any heed to such requests and even its official did not bother to contact or approach the complainant to redress her grievance and she was coerced to approach this Commission by filing the present complaint. During arguments, it has also been contended by counsel for the complainant that all her family members including her father-in-law who is a senior citizen also visited number of times to the office of opposite party no.2 for rectification of the said bills but they did not bother to do so. It is also a definite case of the complainant that electricity connection was also disconnected qua the unit in question which caused her lot of agony, harassment and also humiliation in front of neighbours, masons and labours etc. Thus, it has been proved on record that it  is only during the pendency of the complaint that Opposite Party No.2 has withdrawn the said illegal and arbitrary demand. However, Opposite Party No.2 has failed to give any justification as to why it failed to withdraw the said illegal and arbitrary demand, despite numerous requests made by the complainant. When now opposite party No.2 has been hammered with this litigation, it woke up from its deep slumber and rectified and withdrew the illegal demand, meaning thereby, that the complainant was dragged into unnecessary and unwarranted litigation thereby causing her undue financial loss over and above the mental agony and harassment suffered by her. Even on date of arguments i.e. 16.04.2024, Counsel for the opposite parties stated that notice seeking undue payment from the complainant has been withdrawn and now in future, she will be served notice about due payment only. Thus, as stated above, it is a proven case of admitted deficiency on the part of opposite party No.2. One can well imagine the plight of the complainant, who was to enter alongwith her family in the new flat, yet, before doing so, she alongwith her family members were forced to go through  tremendous humiliation, harassment, mental agony since August 2023, without any fault of her. On account of disconnection of electricity in her unit,  during renovation work being undertaken by the complainant in her flat, her reputation in front of her relatives, neighbours and other family friends would have definitely filched away. It is well settled that the word ‘Compensation’ is of very vide connotation and once the Court is satisfied that the complainant has suffered harassment or mental agony and is entitled to compensation, it is obliged to adequately compensate him/her for the actual loss or expected loss, which would extend to compensation for the physical, mental or emotional sufferings. On the question of determination of compensation for the loss or injury suffered by a consumer on account of deficiency in service, the following observations by a three Judge Bench of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Charan Singh v. Healing Touch Hospital & Ors., - (2000) 7 SCC 668 are also apposite:

“While quantifying damages, Consumer Forums are required to make an attempt to serve the ends of justice so that compensation is awarded, in an established case, which not only serves the purpose of recompensing the individual, but which also at the same time, aims to bring about a qualitative change in the attitude of the service provider. Indeed, calculation of damages depends on the facts and circumstances of each case. No hard and fast rule can be laid down for universal application. While awarding compensation, a Consumer Forum has to take into account all relevant factors and assess compensation on the basis of accepted legal principles, on moderation. It is for the Consumer Forum to grant compensation to the extent it finds it reasonable, fair and proper in the facts and circumstances of a given case according to the established judicial standards where the claimant is able to establish his charge.”

                   Thus, keeping in view the tremendous mental agony, harassment and humiliation suffered by the complainant and also to bring a qualitative change in the attitude of the opposite party no.2, if we award compensation to the tune of Rs.1,25,000/- that will meet the ends of justice. 

 

10]              However, neither we find any deficiency in service nor any unfair trade practice on the part of opposite party No.1. Therefore, the complaint is liable to be dismissed qua opposite party No.1.

 

11]              For the reasons recorded above, the complaint is partly allowed against opposite party No.2 - Facility Plus Estate Management Pvt. Ltd. and it (Opposite Party No.2) is directed as under:-

 

(i)       not to raise any such illegal or arbitrary demand in future bills from the complainant and to raise bills as per actual consumption;

 

(ii)      to pay compensation to the tune of Rs.1,25,000/- to the complainant for causing her mental agony, physical harassment and humiliation, within a period of 30 days from the date of receipt of certified copy of this order, failing which, the aforesaid amount of Rs.1,25,000/- shall carry interest @9% p.a. from the date of default i.e. after expiry of stipulated period of 30 days till realization;

 

(iii)     to pay litigation cost to the tune of Rs.25,000/- to the complainant, within a period of 30 days from the date of receipt of certified copy of this order, failing which, the aforesaid amount of Rs.25,000/- shall carry interest @9% p.a. from the date of default i.e. after expiry of stipulated period of 30 days till realization;

 

12]              However, the complaint against opposite party No.1 stands dismissed with no order as to cost.

 

13]              Certified copies of this order be sent to the parties free of charge.

 

14]              File be consigned to the Record Room after completion.

Pronounced

07^th May 2024                                                           

 

Sd/-

                                                        (PADMA PANDEY)

PRESIDING MEMBER

 

 

Sd/-

                                                        (PREETINDER SINGH)

MEMBER

“Dutt”