Punjab

Ludhiana

CC/20/203

Arun Garg - Complainant(s)

Versus

Reliance Retail Limited - Opp.Party(s)

complaint in person

16 Jul 2021

ORDER

DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION, LUDHIANA.

                                                Complaint No: 203 dated 28.09.2020.                                                      

  Date of decision: 16.07.2021. 

 

1. Er. Arun Garg aged about 52 years son of Sh. Sham Lal Garg,
2. Ms. Aditi Garg aged about 23 years daughter of Er. Arun Garg,

Both residents of House No.40, Central Town, Near Keys Hotel, Pakhowal Road, Village Dada, P.o. Lalton Kalan, Ludhiana.                                                                                          ..…Complainant

                                                Versus

1. Reliance Retail Limited through its Chairman/Managing Director, 3^rd Floor, Court House, Lokmanya Tilak Marg, Dhobi Talao, Mumbai-400 002.
2. Reliance Fresh Store through Owner/Occupier/Manager, Reliance Retail Limited, SCF 12-13-14, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, Pakhowal Road, Ludhiana-141 013.

                                                                             …..Opposite parties.

                   Complaint under Section 35 of The Consumer Protection Act,              2019.

QUORUM:

SH. K.K. KAREER, PRESIDENT

MS.JYOTSNA THATAI, MEMBER

 

COUNSEL FOR THE PARTIES:

For complainants            :         In person.

For OPs                          :         Exparte.

 

ORDER

PER K.K. KAREER, PRESIDENT

1.                Shorn of unnecessary details, the case of the complainants is that on 07.05.2020, they received a message on mobile regarding opening of the outlet of OP2 from 7 AM to 11 AM. Accordingly, on 08.05.2020, the complainants went to the said outlet on 7 AM. The outlet of OP2 is having two floors with different shutters. When the complainants reached the outlet, the upper shutter was half open. The complainants went inside the store to make the purchases, but the security guard and a lady employee started shouting at them. The complainants told them that they had received a message regarding opening of the store from 7 AM onwards, but they did not listen and instead started threatening that they would call the police. Thereafter, the security guard and the lady employee called the manager of OP2, who asked the complainants to make purchases. As a result, the complainants made purchases vide bill Ex. C2 and came back. The security guard of OP2 felt sorry for his behavior, but the lady employee kept shouting at the complainants as she had developed some grudge in her mind against the complainants.

2.                It is further alleged in the complaint that on 24.05.2020, the complainants again visited the outlet of OP2 on 7.15 AM. This time, both the shutters were open. The complainant No.1 went to the upper gate, but there was no sanitizer at the gate and he came down stairs. The complainant No.1 further found the same lady employee shouting at complainant No.2 as to why complainant no.1 had gone to the upper shutter through which there was no entry even though the upper gate was open to public. Thereafter, the complainants went to upper floor and made few purchases. In the meantime, a truck loaded with fresh fruits and vegetables came at the gate of outlet. The employees of OP2 took unnecessary time for unloading the fresh fruits and vegetables from the truck for which the complainants kept waiting. In the process, more than half an hour of the complainants was wasted. Thereafter, the complainants picked up some fresh vegetables after getting the same tagged from a lady employee and a boy employee came to the complainants and talked to them in rude and arrogant manner. Thereafter, the complainants came to the ground floor where too they were treated rudely by the employees of OP2 while billing the purchased items. The complainants were told to leave the store as they had already spent lot of time in the store. The complainant No.2 brought a packet of Besan, but she was not allowed to take other grocery items such as rice, biscuits and suji etc. Copy of bill is Ex. C3. In this manner, the employees of OP2 insulted and misbehaved with the complainants. This amounts to deficiency of service on the part of the OPs. In the end, it has been requested that directions be issued to OPs to treat the customers in a proper manner and the Ops be further made to pay a sum of Rs.4,90,000/-  as damages/compensation to the complainants.

3.                Upon notice, the OPs did not appear despite service and were proceeded against exparte.

4.                In exparte evidence, the complainants tendered affidavit of Er. Arun Garg as Ex. Cx, affidavit of Ms. Aditi Garg as Ex. CY along with documents Ex. C1 to Ex. C5 and closed the evidence.

5.                We have heard the complainants in person and have also gone through the written arguments submitted by complainants and have also gone through the record.

6.                In this case, the grievance of the complainants is that they visited the store of OP2 on 08.05.2020 and 24.05.2020, but the employees at the store misbehaved with them and spoke rudely to them. The complainants purchased goods from the store vide bill Ex. C2 dated 08.05.2020 whereby they purchased as many as 18 items for a sum of Rs.910.34. Vide bill Ex. C3 dated 24.05.2020, the complainants purchased 8 items worth Rs.320.75 . There is no allegations in the complaint except that of the rude behavior of the staff at the store of the OPs. The allegations of rude behavior are also vague and general in nature which, in our considered opinion, do not tantamount to any deficiency of service on the part of the OPs. Here, it would be pertinent to observe that during the period of COVID lockdown, stores used to open for a limited time during which the public used to flock to the stores for purchasing necessities and the staff of such stores had to cooperate with lot of people within very limited time. Even if the staff at the store took some time in unloading the fruits and vegetables from the truck, that cannot amount to deficiency of service keeping in view the extraordinary circumstances of the COVID during which supply and transportation of goods was erratic and it could not be expected of the OPs to have everything at the store by 7 O’clock in the morning. Thus, this Commission does not find any merit in the complaint, which deserves to be dismissed.

7.                As a result of above discussion, the complaint fails and same is hereby dismissed.  Copies of order be supplied to parties free of costs as per rules. File be indexed and consigned to record room.

 

                             (Jyotsna Thatai)                               (K.K. Kareer)

                    Member                                           President

Announced in Open Commission.

Dated:16.07.2021.

Gobind Ram.