Sri Shyamal Gupta, Member

This Revision is preferred against the Order dated 12-12-2018, passed by the Ld. District Forum, Howrah in CC/276/2017.

The case of the Revisionist, in short, is that, on receipt of notice, it appeared before the Ld. District Forum through its Advocate on 11-10-2017 and sought for requisite documents which were not sent along with the notice.  Accordingly, as per the direction of the Ld. District Forum, the same were handed over to its Ld. Advocate on 06-12-2017 and the Forum below, at its wisdom, fixed the next date for submission of WV on 22-02-2017.  However, on the date fixed, when the Revisionist sought to submit the WV after serving copy to the other side, the Ld. District Forum refused to accept the same on the ground that the statutory period of 45 days earmarked for submission of WV already got over meanwhile.  Thereafter, a petition was moved on the part of the Revisionist to set aside the ex parte order.  The same being turned down by the Ld. District Forum vide order impugned, aggrieved with such decision, this Revision is preferred.

I heard both sides in the matter and gone through the documents on record.

From the sequence of events as narrated by the Revisionist, it is clear that dates were fixed up by the Ld. District Forum in a very casual manner.  While, rightly or wrongly, an order was passed by the Forum below thereby giving liberty to the Revisionist to file its WV on 22-02-2017, it was highly illegal/illogical on the part of the Forum below to do a volte-face on the next day.  The statute does not empower District Forum to recall/review its own order.    

The Act stipulates that the Opposite Side should be given 30 days time to file written version and the same can be extended by another 15 days at the most at the discretion of the District Forum.  Implicit in it is the fact that the notice should be complete in all respects.  Now, when the Revisionist brought the matter of non-receipt of requisites and accordingly, the Forum below passed an order directing the Respondent/Complainant to furnish the same and which was ultimately provided to the Revisionist on 06-12-2017, clock should started ticking w.e.f. 06-12-2017 which was not done for some inexplicable reasons.

Considering above aspects, I set aside the impugned order and direct the parties to appear before the Ld. District Forum on 27-01-2020 for submission of WV. 

Consequent thereto, the Revision stands allowed.