NCDRC

NCDRC

RP/55/2008

DR. SMT. PRATIBHA CHATURVEDI - Complainant(s)

Versus

UNION BANK OF INDIA & OTHERS - Opp.Party(s)

MR. HANS RAJ MUTREJA

19 Nov 2013

ORDER

NATIONAL CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION
NEW DELHI
 
REVISION PETITION NO. 55 OF 2008
 
(Against the Order dated 10/08/2007 in Appeal No. 1839/2006 of the State Commission Madhya Pradesh)
1. DR. SMT. PRATIBHA CHATURVEDI
THAKUR RANMAT SINGH DEGREE COLLEGE,
REWA,
MADHYA PRADESH
...........Petitioner(s)
Versus 
1. UNION BANK OF INDIA & OTHERS
THROUGH REGIONAL MANAGER, REGIONAL OFFICE, GANGOTRI COMPLEX, NEW MARKET,
BHOPAL,
MADHYA PRADESH
2. UNION BANK OF INDIA
THROUGH BRANCH MANAGER, 12, NEAR RANIGANJ,
VYANKAT ROAD,
MADHYA PRADESH
3. UMESH DIXIT
PROPRIETOR - M/S PRINTER HOUSE, PUSHP RAJ NAGAR,
REWA
MADHYA PRADESH
...........Respondent(s)

BEFORE: 
 HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE K.S. CHAUDHARI, PRESIDING MEMBER
 HON'BLE MR. DR. B.C. GUPTA, MEMBER

For the Petitioner :
For the Respondent :

Dated : 19 Nov 2013
ORDER

This revision petition has been filed under section 21(b) of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 against the impugned order dated 03.10.2007, passed by the Madhya Pradesh State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (for short he State Commission in FA No. 1839/2006, vide which the order dated 02.06.2006, passed by District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, Rewa, allowing the consumer complaint in question was set aside. 2. Brief facts of the case are that the petitioner/complainant deposited a sum of `1 lakh with the respondent Union Bank of India and a Fixed Deposit Receipt (FDR), bearing number 7622508 was issued in her favour on 26.03.96. The respondent no. 3, Umesh Dixit, Proprietor, M/s. Printer House, availed loan from the Union Bank of India for his business, for which the petitioner/complainant was one of the guarantors. It is made out that the Bank adjusted the maturity amount of the FDR against the loan amount of respondent no. 3 Umesh Dixit. The main grievance expressed by the petitioner in her consumer complaint says that the Bank should not have adjusted the maturity amount of the FDR to settle the loan account of the respondent no. 3. The Bank sent a letter to the petitioner on 24.10.2002 that her deposit had matured on 26.09.2002, but it had been renewed for 15 days. The said amount was pledged in the account of M/s. Printer House and shall be adjusted in the said account on the due date. In reply to this letter, the petitioner wrote to the Bank on 28.10.2002 that the loan matter of M/s. Printer House was pending in the court of Tehsildar, Tehsil and District Rewa. The Bank could not adjust the said amount till the time the said matter was disposed of. The Bank informed the petitioner through another letter on 30.10.2002 that the amount of FD was pledged in the loan account of the Printer House and as per the agreement, it shall remain pledged till the loan remained due and the Bank had the right to adjust the same in the loan account. On 16.11.2002, there is entry in the ledger book relating to M/s. Printer House that an amount of `2,13,914/- had been adjusted in their loan account, meaning thereby that the maturity amount of FDR was credited to the account of M/s. Printer House. Later on in June, 2004, a one-time settlement was reached between the Bank and the Printer House, according to which the loan case was to be closed on payment of `4,75,000/-. Accordingly, after payment of the said amount of `4,75,000/- a no due certificate was issued by the Bank on 13.07.2004 in favour of respondent no. 3. On the other hand, the petitioner wrote a letter dated 18.08.2004 to the Bank, requesting for return of her money because the loan case of respondent no. 3 had been settled. On the failure of the Bank to do so, the consumer complaint in question was filed which was decided by the District Forum vide their letter dated 2.06.2006, according to which they ordered the Bank to make payment of the maturity amount of the disputed amount to the petitioner with interest. An appeal against this order filed before the State Commission was allowed and the order of the District Forum was set aside. It is against this order that the present petition has been made. 3. At the time of hearing before us, the learned counsel for the petitioner stated that the loan account of the respondent no. 3 M/s. Printer House had been settled with the Bank against the payment of `4,75,000/-. The amount involved in the FDR belonging to the petitioner was not a part of this settlement and hence this amount should be returned to the petitioner by the Bank. Learned counsel has drawn our attention to a letter dated 12.06.2004 written to respondent no. 3, Umesh Dixit by the Bank in which it has been stated that the compromised amount was `4.75 lakh. The learned counsel has also drawn our attention to letter dated 18.08.2004, written by the petitioner to the Bank saying that her FDR amount may be returned to them. A registered notice was also sent in this regard to the Bank, but the Bank in their reply refused to refund the said amount. The learned counsel further stated that there had been many discrepancies in the account statement maintained by the Bank. 3. On the other hand, the learned counsel for the Bank stated that they had duly informed the petitioner through their letter dated 24.10.2002, that the FDR was being renewed for 15 days and at the expiry of this period, the maturity amount shall be adjusted in the loan account of M/s. Printer House. The petitioner through her letter dated 28.10.2002 asked them not to do so, because a case was pending with the Court of Tehsildar, but they have sent another letter dated 30.10.2002 to her, saying that the said amount will be adjusted against the loan account of M/s. Printer House. On 16.11.2002, the maturity value of the FDR, i.e., `2,13,914/- was credited to the account of M/s. Printer House. The one-time settlement entered between the Bank and the Printer House was made in June 2004 and the settled amount of `4,75,000/- was paid by the loanee and his account was closed. This settlement had nothing to do with the maturity amount of FDR adjusted in the account of the loanee on 16.11.2002, i.e., one and a half year back. 4. We have examined the entire material on record and given a thoughtful consideration to the arguments advanced before us. It has not been denied by the petitioner/complainant anywhere that she was not the guarantor for the loan given to M/s. Printer House. The entries on record, make it very clear that the Bank decided to adjust the maturity amount of the FDR belonging to the guarantor in the loan account of M/s. Printer House. After giving her due information vide their letter dated 24.10.2002 and again vide their letter dated 30.10.2002 in response to her letter dated 28.10.2002, they took the necessary step and adjusted the said maturity amount in the loan account of M/s. Printer House on 16.11.2002. A perusal of the entries in the ledger account of M/s. Printer House indicates that the said amount was adjusted on 16.11.2002 and the outstanding balance of `8,44,985/- was reduced to `6,31,071/- after adjustment of amount of `2,13,914/- which was the maturity value of the said FDR. In so far as the OTS is concerned, that reflects a later development, which took place in June 2004 and according to which, the loan was to be settled after payment of `4.75 lakh to the Bank. The ledger entries indicate clearly that an amount of `2 lakh was deposited on 10.06.2004 and another amount of `2.75/- was deposited on 30.06.2004 in the loan account of M/s. Printer House. An amount of `1,56,071/- was ordered to be written off and there was ilbalance as on 10.07.2004. 5. It is made out from the above facts that there is no correlation between the adjustment of the maturity amount of FDR belonging to the petitioner done in November 2002 and the OTS entered later on in June 2004. The petitioner, therefore, does not acquire any right to recover the amount of the said FDR from the Bank, after the OTS was reached. At the time of adjustment of maturity amount of `2,13,914/- of the FDR belonging to the petitioner on 16.11.2002, the outstanding balance in the account of the loanee was reduced from `8,44,985/- to `6,31,071/-. The balance outstanding amount as in June 2004 was settled by way of depositing a further amount of `4.75lakh and writing off the remaining amount of `1,56,071/-. It is obvious that the adjustment of the maturity amount done quite some time back is regardless of one time settlement reached later. 6. In view of this situation, it is clear that the order passed by the State Commission does not suffer from any infirmity, illegality or jurisdictional error. The said order is, therefore, upheld and the revision petition is ordered to be dismissed with no order as to costs.

 
......................J
K.S. CHAUDHARI
PRESIDING MEMBER
......................
DR. B.C. GUPTA
MEMBER

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