Haryana

Yamunanagar

CC/397/2014

Shamsher Singh S/o Dharambir Singh - Complainant(s)

Versus

S.D.O. BSNL lTd. - Opp.Party(s)

Inperson

14 Oct 2015

ORDER

BEFORE THE DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL FORUM, YAMUNA NAGAR

 

                                                                                            Complaint No.397 of 2014.

                                                                                            Date of institution:17.9.2014.

                                                                                            Date of decision: 14.10.2015.

Shamsher Singh aged 72 years son of Sh. Dharambir Singh, resident of village Nagalpati Machhrauli, Tehsil Bilaspur, District Yamuna Nagar.                                                                                                                                                                                        …Complainant.

                                    Versus

S.D.O.  Bharat Sanchar Nigam  Ltd. Bilaspur, District Yamuna Nagar.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      …Opposite party

 

Before:             SH. ASHOK KUMAR GARG…………….. PRESIDENT.

                        SH. S.C.SHARMA………………………….MEMBER.

 

Present:  Complainant in person.   

                Sh. Bhanwar Singh, Advocate, counsel for OP. 

                

ORDER

 

1.                     Complainant Sh. Shamsher Singh has filed the present complaint under section 12 of the Consumer Protection Act. 1986.   

2.                     Brief facts of the complaint, as alleged by the complainant, are that the complainant had obtained landline connection of Telephone bearing No. 01735-256386 from Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. and his telephone generally remains out of order and it remained in order for not more than 10 days since its installation. The complainant has not received any bill of telephone connection since 5-6 months. The complainant made several telephone calls on telephone No. 9467300400 of J.E. in telephone Exchange, Chhachhrauli but J.E. replies to contact him to solve the problem. The complainant deposited telephone bill at Sadhaura Exchange on 5.6.2014 vide receipt No. 1003857389 and his telephone came in working order on 8.6.2014 and again became out of order on 18.7.2014. The complainant again made complaint on telephone No. 9467300400 of J.E. and again he advised the complainant to contact him. The telephone of complainant generally remains out of order but OP is sending bill to him regularly which is illegal as he is facing monetary loss.  

3.                     Upon notice, OP appeared through counsel and filed its written statement by taking some preliminary objections such as complaint is not maintainable, no locus standi to file the present complaint and on merit it is submitted that the said telephone connection No. 01735-256386 has become DDNP on 14.8.2014 due to non payment of bill amount of Rs. 501/- and the same has been permanently disconnected/ closed due to non payment on 11.3.2015. As such, the complainant is defaulter, so, the complainant has no locus standi to file the present false and frivolous complaint. The complainant is making false excuse just to give colour to his false pleadings. The complainant has not made any alleged complaint and the complainant never lodged his complaint on complaint toll free No. 198. The complainant is not entitled to get any relief from this Forum in view of facts narrated above and prayed for dismissal of complaint.

4.                     To prove the case, complainant tendered into evidence his affidavit as Annexure CW/A, Affidavit of Suresh Pal son of Sh. Sihna Ram village Machhrauli as Annexure CW/B and documents such as Photo copy of news paper cutting as Annexure C-1, Photo copy of receipt dated 5.6.2014 as Annexure C-2 and closed his evidence.

5.                     On the other hand, counsel for the OP tendered into evidence affidavit of Suneel Kumar, J.T.O. (G), B.S.N.L. Chhachhrauli as Annexure RW/A and closed the evidence on behalf of OP.  

6.         We have heard both the parties and have gone through the pleadings as well as documents placed on file carefully and minutely.

7.                     The only plea of the complainant is that his telephone bearing No. 01735-256386 generally remains defective since the day of its installation. Complainant argued that the OP is sending telephone bill regularly to him for the period during which telephone remained dead which is illegal and prayed for initiating legal action against the OP. The complainant in para No.4 of the complaint has specifically mentioned that his telephone remained in working only for 2-3 days after depositing the bill dated 5.6.2014 and become dead after 2-3 days which was put in order on 16.7.2014 but again the telephone in question become dead on 18.7.2014. The complainant draw our attention towards the news paper cutting and affidavit of Suresh Pal son of Sh. Sinha Ram (Annexure CW/B). The complainant further stated that OP has also failed to supply the telephone bill to the complainant so many times and the complainant himself was forced to collect the same and in this way he has suffered a lot of mental agony, harassment and financial loss. Lastly Prayed for acceptance of complaint.

8                      On the other hand counsel for the OP argued that the telephone connection of complainant became DDNP on 14.8.2014 due to non payment of bill amount of Rs. 501/- and the same has been permanently disconnected/closed on 11.3.2015 and all the other allegations leveled in the complaint has also been denied and prayed for dismissal of complaint being false and frivolous.  

9.                     The arguments advanced by the counsel for the OP is not tenable to our mind as the OP has not filed any documentary proof in the shape of call details for the month of June 2014, July 2014 to prove that telephone of the complainant remained in working order since the day of installation. Even the OP has not specifically denied the allegations leveled by the complainant in his complaint particularly in para No.4 of the complaint. The only stand taken by the OP is that the telephone connection of the complainant has become DDNP on 14.8.2014 due to non payment of bill amounting to Rs. 501/- and the same has been permanently disconnected due to non payment on 11.3.2015. Even the OP failed to file the copy of bills for the period from June 2014 to 11.3.2015 whereas the complainant has specifically made allegation that the telephone bills never comes to the complainant’s house and in this regard he has made so many complaints to the J.E. of Machhrauli Exchange. The version of the complainant is duly supported by the affidavit and also by the affidavit of Sh. Suresh Pal son of Sh. Sihna Ram R/o village Machhrauli who has specifically mentioned in his affidavit that he has carried the complaint made by the complainant and submitted the same with the machhrauli Exchange. On the other hand, affidavit filed by Sunil Kumar J.T.O of B.S.N.L. Machhrauli is totally silent regarding any complaint and has stated only in his affidavit that the telephone of the complainant was become DDNP on 14.8.2014 and was permanently disconnected on 11.3.2015. Even in this affidavit J.T.O. BSNL has not mentioned a single word that the telephone of the complainant did not remain out of working.

 10.                  After going through the above noted circumstances we are of the considered view that the telephone of the complainant remained out of working order and the OP also failed to supply the BSNL Telephone bills regularly to the complainant which constitute a deficiency in service on the part of OP.

11.                   Resultantly, we partly allow the complaint of the complainant and direct the OP to overhaul the account of the complainant for the last six months from the date of permanent disconnection i.e. 11.3.2015 on the basis of actual working days and waive off the proportionate amount of the rent for the period during which telephone remained dead. Further the OP is also directed to pay Rs. 1000/- as compensation for mental agony, harassment and Rs. 500/- as litigation expenses and further OP is directed to set right the landline telephone bearing No. 01735-256386 of the complainant if he requests to re-connect the telephone connection. Accordingly, the complaint is decided in above terms. Order be complied within 30 days from the date of preparation of copy of this order failing which complainant shall be entitled to invoke the jurisdiction of this Forum as per law. Copies of this order be sent to the parties concerned free of costs as per rules. File be consigned to the record room after due compliance.

Announced: 14.10.2015.                    

                                                                                    (ASHOK KUMAR GARG )

                                                                                    PRESIDENT,

 

                                                                                     

                                                                                    (S.C.SHARMA )

                                                                                     MEMBER.