State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission
Ratna Bose vs India Infoline Ltd. on 9 August, 2018
Cause Title/Judgement-Entry STATE CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION WEST BENGAL 11A, Mirza Ghalib Street, Kolkata - 700087 First Appeal No. A/1187/2017 ( Date of Filing : 09 Nov 2017 ) (Arisen out of Order Dated 17/10/2017 in Case No. CC/734/2013 of District Kolkata-I(North)) 1. Ratna Bose W/o Priya Sankar Bose, 87A/1, Bosepukur Road, P.O. & P.S. - Kasba, Kolkata - 700 042. ...........Appellant(s) Versus 1. India Infoline Ltd. 1, Shakespeare Sarani, P.O. & P.S. - Shakespeare Sarani, A.C. Market(5th Floor), Kolkata - 700 071. ...........Respondent(s) BEFORE: HON'BLE MR. SHYAMAL GUPTA PRESIDING MEMBER HON'BLE MR. UTPAL KUMAR BHATTACHARYA MEMBER For the Appellant: Mr. Priya Sankar Bose- Auth. Person/, Advocate For the Respondent: Mr. Krishnaditya Chakraborty., Advocate Dated : 09 Aug 2018 Final Order / Judgement Sri Shyamal Gupta, Member
The complaint case since been dismissed by the Ld. District Forum, aggrieved with such decision, this Appeal is filed.
Brief facts of the complaint case are that the OP transferred her share trading account to Mumbai without her consent or serving any notice to her. Although she took up the matter with the OP, the latter did not give any reply. Then the matter was referred to the NSE, but the OP did not give any reply to the show cause notice issued by the Regulator. However, since she did not get proper relief there, the complaint case was filed.
By filing WV, the Complainant resisted the complaint case. The counter case of the OP is that the Complainant was provided the facility of trading through the centralized dedicated dealing desk. The same was duly informed to her to which no objection was raised and she continued to trade through her account for the last 2 years. It is also stated that the Complainant herself opted for receiving electronic contract notes through mail. It is further submitted that the Complainant, besides lodging complaint with the NSE, also initiated Arbitration proceedings, which was however dismissed by the Ld. Arbitrator. The instant complainant case, according to the OP, was hit by the principles of Res Judicata.
Decision with reasons Heard both sides and perused the documents on record.
On a reference to the impugned order, we find that the same was dismissed on multiple grounds.
Referring to a decision of Hon'ble National Commission, reported in II (2012) CPJ 181 (NC), the Ld. District Forum observed that a share trader is not a consumer.
In M/s Steel City Securities Ltd. v. Shri G.P. Ramesh & Anr., Revision Petition No. 3060/2011, the Hon'ble National Commission held thus, "Since respondents are trading regularly in the share business which is commercial activity, under these circumstances, Respondents would not fall under the definition of 'consumer' as per the Act. Moreover regular trading in the sale and purchase of shares is a purely commercial activity and the only motive is to earn profits. Therefore, this activity being purely commercial one is not covered under the provisions of the Act".
That being the settled legal position, there was no need for the Ld. District Forum to proceed further in the matter. In our considered opinion, the instant complaint case was rightly dismissed by the Ld. District Forum.
In this regard, it is significant to note that the Appellant's husband moved several cases before different Consumer Fora and also filed Appeals in respect of his share trading related disputes. In the past also, this Commission iterated the settled legal position in the matter. It clearly shows, Appellant's husband has made it a habit of filing frivolous cases against share trading companies. This cannot be allowed. We, thus, deem it fit and proper to impose a token cost upon the Appellant.
The Appeal is devoid of any merit, thus fails.
Hence, O R D E R E D The Appeal stands dismissed against the Respondent on contest with a cost of Rs. 5,000/- being payable by the Appellant to the Respondent within 40 days from today. The impugned order is hereby affirmed. [HON'BLE MR. SHYAMAL GUPTA] PRESIDING MEMBER [HON'BLE MR. UTPAL KUMAR BHATTACHARYA] MEMBER