Enforcement of the orders
•To enforce the orders passed by the District Forum, the State Commission or the National
Commission
•The orders are to be given the same value as is given to a decree passed by a Court in a suit.
1) In non-compliance of interim order by consumer courts, the court may order to attach the
property of that person.
2) The attachment of property remain in force until 3 months but if non-compliance continue after
3 months property may be sold and out of proceeds, award a compensation to complainant.
3) If any amount is due from any person under an order made, the person entitled to the amount
may issue a certificate for the said amount to the Collector of the district (by whatever name called)
and the Collector shall proceed to recover the amount in the same manner as arrears of land
revenue.
Offences & Penalties
The provision added after the case: Rajani Gas Company v. V.P. Jawalekar
Offence
When an order is passed for the trader, or a person against whom a complaint is made or the
complainant, all are supposed to comply with the orders, defaulting which accrue a penalty .
Penalties
In non-compliance of order of district forum, state commission, or national commission by trader or
the person against whom complaint is made or the complainant, the law provide punishment of
a) Imprisonment b) or fine c) or both
Imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one month but which may extend to
three years, or with fine which shall not be less than two thousands rupees but which may
extend to ten thousand rupees, or with both
•
However, if it is satisfied that the circumstances of any case so requires, then the District Forum
or the State Commission or the National Commission may impose a lower fine or a shorter term
of imprisonment
Dismissal of frivolous or vexatious complaints
If a complaint instituted before the District Forum, the State Commission or the National
Commission, is found to be frivolous or vexatious, it shall, for reasons to be recorded in writing,
dismiss the complaint and make an order that the complainant shall pay to the opposite party
When determining an appropriate fine, the Consumer Tribunal consider the following factors:
• The nature, duration, gravity and extent of the contravention.
• Any loss or damage suffered as a result of the contravention.
• The behaviour of the respondent.
• The market circumstances in which the contravention took place.
• The level of profit derived from the contravention.
• The degree to which the respondent has co-operated with the Commission and the Tribunal.
• Whether the respondent has previously been found in contravention of this Act.
Judgements
Delhi Development Authority v D.C. Sharma
In the case of an accidental double allotment of a plot by the Delhi Development Authority,
the State Commission refused to accept the defence that the plot had not been provided
to the complainant only for his failure to pay the cost. It was found from the records that
the plot had been allocated to another person. It, therefore, ordered the Delhi
Development Authority to either provide another plot of the same description to the
appellant under the same conditions or pay the escalated price of the plot.
The National Commission dismissed the revision petition for lack of infirmity in the State
Commission’s judgment and imposed a penalty of five lakhs for indulging in unfair trade
practices and unduly harassing the respondent for more than eighteen years.
Judgements
Imposition of penalty for frivolous consumer claims
Sapient Corporation Employees Provident Fund Trust v HDFC.
In a complaint against HDFC for debiting money without the permission of the holder, the
National Commission noted that payment was done in compliances with the order of a
statutory authority and only after giving the complainant due notice of the same. The
Commission stated that there is a need to guard against the possibility of frivolous
complaints from being filed due to the absence of any court fees. For this reason, holding
that the complaint lacked seriousness and was filed without sufficient grounds, the
Commission imposed a fine of twenty-five thousand on the complainant.
Appeal against order passed
An appeal shall lie from -
(a)
the order made by the District Forum to the State Commission ;
(b)
the order made by the State Commission to the National Commission; and
(c)
the order made by the National Commission to the Supreme Court.
Every appeal shall be preferred within a period of thirty days from the date of an order of a
District Forum or a State Commission or the National Commission
May entertain an appeal after the expiry of the said period of thirty days, if, it is satisfied that
the appellant had sufficient cause for not preferring the appeal within the period of thirty
days.