New India Assurance Co. Ltd v. Esys Information Technologies Ltd

Supreme Court of India · 16 Jan 2009
B.N. Agrawal; G.S. Singhvi
CIVIL APPEAL NO.254 OF 2009
consumer appeal_allowed Significant

AI Summary

The Supreme Court held that summary dismissal of consumer complaints without notice is improper and remanded the matter for merits adjudication after hearing all parties.

Full Text
Translation output
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
CIVIL APPEAL NO.254 OF 2009
(Arising out of S.L.P. (C) No.178 of 2009)
New India Assurance Co. Ltd. ...Appellant(s)
VERSUS
Esys Information Technologies Ltd. ...Respondent(s)
With Civil Appeal Nos.255-256/2009 in S.L.P. (C) Nos.926-927 of 2009
Leave granted.
Heard learned counsel for the parties.
The State Consumer Disputes Redressal commission, Delhi [for short, “State Commission”] summarily dismissed two complainants filed by the respondent by separate orders without even issuing notices to the respondent before it (appellant herein). By the impugned orders, the National Consumer Disputes Redressal
Commission [for short, the Commission'] allowed the appeals on merits and directed the appellant to pay the specified amount to the respondent. In our view, when the complaints were summarily dismissed by the State Commission without even issuing notice to the respondent before it and the National Commission was of the view that the dismissal was not justified, then it should have remanded the matter to the State
Commission for deciding the matter on merits. ...2/-
- 2 -
Accordingly, the appeals are allowed, impugned orders are set aside and the matters are remitted to the State Commission to decide the complaints on merits in accordances with law after giving opportunity of hearing to the parties.
Let hearing of the complaints by the State Commission be expedited. ......................J.
[B.N. AGRAWAL] ......................J.
[G.S. SINGHVI]
New Delhi, January 16, 2009.
JUDGMENT