Per Mr S M Shembole, Hon’ble Presiding Member
1. This is an application for condonation of delay of 96 days, which was caused in preferring the appeal against the judgement & order dated 08/06/2007 passed by District Consumer Forum, Nagpur in consumer complaint No. CC/06/426.
2. We heard Mr. Harode, Ld. Counsel for the appellant and Mr. Satish Dube for the respondent and perused the application under order and the copy of impugned judgement & order.
3. Undisputedly, there was 96 days delay in filing the appeal. According to Mr. Harode, Ld. Counsel for the appellant the delay which was caused was on administrative ground only and it was not with any mala fide intention to prolong the execution of the impugned order. According to him on receipt of the copy of the impugned judgment and order, the appellant was required to obtain approval of its head office which is situated at Ahamedabad by sending the case paper and therefore, there was such delay. According to Mr. Harode, Ld. Counsel for the appellant there is legal point involved in the appeal and therefore, it is just & necessary to condone the delay. Accordingly, he has submitted to condone the delay.
4. As against the submission of Mr. Harode, Ld. Counsel for the appellant, Mr. Satish Dube, Ld. Counsel for the respondent submitted that there is no just & reasonable ground to condone the delay. He has submitted to dismiss the application.
5. True it is that the applicant was required to obtain approval of its Head Office for filing the appeal by sending the case papers. The appellant bank was also required to obtain legal opinion before sending case papers to its Head Office situated at Ahamedabad but, in our view, there could be no reason for such delay of 96 days. If the officials of the applicant were interested in filing the appeal in time, they could have obtained the approval as well as legal opinion within the stipulated period of limitation or within any reasonable period. Therefore, we find no just & reasonable ground to condone the delay. Now a days there are so many conveyance & communication facilities available, and as such, there could be no reason for such delay. It is well settled law that the delay, in the absence of any reasonable ground, can not be condoned. If such inordinate delay is condoned, the object of the legislation would be defeated. Any how we find no just and reasonable ground to condone such delay. Therefore, we decline to condone the delay and pass the following order
ORDER
1. Application for condonation of delay stands dismissed. Consequently appeal bearing No. A/07/1094 is rejected.
2. No order as to cost.
