Order dictated by:

Sh.Anoop Sharma, Presiding Member

1.       Deepinder Singh complainant has brought the instant complaint under section  12 & 13 of  the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 on the allegations that complainant is consumer of domestic electric connection bearing account No. 3001474832 installed at his residential premises. The complainant has been making payment of the bills regularly without committing any default and no amount is outstanding against the said electric connection of the complainant. On 25.12.2016 at about 9.00 p.m. complainant received SMS from PSPCL stating “Disconnection order has been issued against your CA 003001474832 due to unpaid bill due on 2.12.2016. Please pay Rs. 5734/- including reconnection charges immediately. Please ignore if already paid.” Complainant has alleged that no electric bill with due date 2.12.2016 was ever served upon the complainant  by the opposite party.  Immediately the complainant checked on the site of PSPCL and found that no amount was outstanding against consumer account of the complainant  and it was clearly mentioned there that “Latest bill not uploaded”. Though there was no detail of the bill outstanding, if any, yet the complainant made online payment of amount mentioned in notice by SMS and paid Rs. 6000/- on safer side vide receipt No. 105902791 dated 25.12.2016 at about 10.30 p.m. The said act of the opposite party of charging amount of electric bill without serving the same amounts to deficiency in service. The complainant vide instant complaint has sought for the following reliefs:-

(a)     Opposite party be directed to refund Rs. 6000/-  so recovered from the complainant on 25.12.2016  alongwith interest @ 18% p.a. ;

(b)     Compensation to the tune of Rs. 25000/- for harassment as well as mental agony  and threat of illegal disconnection of electric connection be also awarded to the complainant ;

( c)     Litigation expenses to the tune of Rs. 11000/- be also paid to the complainant.

Hence, this complaint.

2.       Upon notice, opposite party appeared and filed written version in which it was submitted that complainant has not come to this Forum with clean hands  and has suppressed the material facts from this Forum. The bill dated 2.12.2016 has been rightly issued to the complainant and the same was duly received by the complainant. But the complainant has wilfully and deliberately concealed this material fact . It was submitted that said SMS has been duly sent by the opposite party to the complainant in its routine official work/job. It was denied that no electric bill with due date 2.12.2016 was ever served upon the complainant . It was denied that immediately the complainant checked on the online site of the PSPCL and found out that no amount was outstanding  against consumer account of the complainant . There was no such emergency for the complainant to pay the electricity bill in the late night hours. However, it might be possible that the complainant was having facility to pay online bill and that is why he paid the said bill through online during night hours  as per his own facility. The complainant was well within the knowledge of said bill as he has duly received the bill dated 2.12.2016. While denying and controverting other allegations, dismissal of complaint was prayed.

3.       In his bid to prove the case complainant tendered into evidence his duly sworn affidavit Ex.C-1, copy of SMS message Ex.C-2, copy of payment receipts Ex.C-3 & Ex.C-4, copy of electricity bill Ex.C-5, copy of payment receipt Ex.C-6 and closed his evidence.

4.       To rebut the aforesaid evidence Mrs.Sharanjit Kaur, Adv.counsel for the opposite party tendered into evidence affidavit of Sh.Anishdeep  Singh Ex.OP1, copy of consumption data Ex.OP2 and Ex.OP3 and closed the evidence on behalf of the opposite party.

5.       We have heard the ld.counsel for the parties and have carefully gone through the record on the file.

6.       From the facts and  circumstances of the case, it becomes evident that complainant is consumer of electric connection bearing account No. 3001474832 installed at his residential premises and he has been making payment of all the bills regularly without committing any default. It was the case of the complainant that on 25.12.2016 at about 9 p.m.,  he has received SMS from PSPCL stating “Disconnection order has been issued against your CA 003001474832 due to unpaid bill due on 2.12.2016. Please pay Rs. 5734/- including reconnection charges immediately. Please ignore if already paid”, copy of SMS accounts for Ex.C-2 on record. On receipt of the said SMS, as it being a late Sunday night and no electric bill with due date 2.12.2016 was ever served upon the complainant, the complainant immediately checked through online of PSPCL  and found that no amount was outstanding against consumer account of the complainant  and it was clearly mentioned there that “Latest bill not uploaded”. However, complainant on safer side made payment of Rs. 6000/-through online  vide receipt No. 105902791 dated 25.12.2016, copy of receipt is Ex.C-4 on record. On the other hand, the case of the opposite party is that  the complainant was well within the knowledge of said bill as he has duly received the bill dated 2.12.2016. But, however,  the copy of bill Ex.C-5 itself shows that  the issue date of bill was 25.12.2016 and how the complainant can receive the bill before the issue date  . On receipt of the SMS, complainant also checked the status of the bill through online site of the PSPCL and the result of the online site of the PSPCL shows that “latest bill not uploaded”. Then how the opposite party can send SMS of bill ,which has neither been uploaded on the site of the PSPCL nor the same has ever been issued at the time of sending SMS. So by getting SMS regarding disconnection order  of his electric connection, the complainant   was compelled to make the payment in question to avoid disconnection through online  on the same date i.e. 25.12.2016 at about 10.30 p.m.vide receipt Ex.C-4   , which has caused mental harassment as well as inconvenience to the complainant . However, on receipt of bill dated 25.12.2016 to the tune of Rs. 8120/-, copy of bill is  Ex.C-5 , the complainant also made payment of this bill vide receipt Ex.C-6. In this way the complainant was forced to make hefty amount of Rs. 6000/- without any legal liability. Due to aforesaid act of the opposite party , complainant has suffered mental tension, harassment as well as inconvenience, for which complainant is entitled to compensation. The documents i.e. consumption data Ex.OP2 and Ex,.OP3 produced by the opposite party are of no use to consider by this Forum. But, however, the amount of  Rs. 6000/- deposited by the complainant has nowhere denied or rebutted by the opposite party.

7.       So in view of the above discussion, we hold that opposite party is definitely deficient in rendering services to the complainant and we direct the opposite party to refund the amount of Rs. 6000/- alongwith interest @ 6% p.a. from the date of deposit till realization.  For causing mental harassment as well as inconvenience to the complainant, opposite party is also liable to pay compensation to the tune of Rs. 3000/- as well as litigation expenses are assessed at  Rs. 2000/-. Compliance of this order be made within a period of 30 days from the date of receipt of copy of this order ; failing which complainant shall be entitled to get the order executed through the indulgence of this Forum. Case could not be disposed of within the stipulated period due to heavy pendency of the cases in this Forum. Copies of the orders be furnished to the parties free of costs. File is ordered to be consigned to the record room.

Announced in Open Forum

Dated : 7.4.2017