Orissa

Cuttak

CC/266/2022

Srimanta Dash - Complainant(s)

Versus

Branch Manager,Central Bank Of India - Opp.Party(s)

A K Samal

21 Aug 2023

ORDER

IN THE COURT OF THE DIST. CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION, CUTTACK.

                                                C.C. No.266/2022

                        Srimanta Dash,

S/o: Late Dharanidhar Dash,

Permanent resident of At:Bagal Sahi,

P.O:Pokhariagaon,P.S:Niali,

Dist:Cuttack,Pin-754004,Odisha.                                 ... Complainant.

 

          Vrs.                        

 

1.    Central Bank of India,

Tamando Branch,At/PO:Tamando,

                      Bhubaneswar,Pin-752054

Dist:Khurda,Odisha represented by its

Branch Manager.

 

2.   Regional Manager,

Central Bank of India,

Plot No.108,B, Unit-VII,1^st Floor,

Surya Nagar,Gopabandhu Chowk,

                     Bhubaneswar,Dist:Khurda,

Pin-751003,Odisha, represented by its

Regional Manager.                                                      ....Opp. Parties.

 

Present:         Sri Debasish Nayak,President.

                      Sri Sibananda Mohanty,Member.

 

Date of filing:    31.12.2022

Date of Order:  23.08.2023

 

For the complainant:         Mr. A.K.Samal,Adv. & Associates.

For the O.Ps               :        Mr. S.K.Sarangi,Adv. & Associates.

 

Sri Debasish Nayak,President.

                                 

Case of the complainant as made out from the complaint petition in short is that in order to construct his residential house at the outskirt of Bhubaneswar he had selected a plot at Bhagbanpur Mouza bearing Revenue Plot no.1136/2151(sub-plot no.8) in Revenue Khata No.668/1069 near Maa Santoshi Enclave at Mahadev Nagar,Bhagbanpur of Bhubaneswar.  In order to get financial assistance for the said purpose, the complainant had approached O.P no.1 with all his documents and had applied for a loan of Rs.30,00,000/-which was sanctioned in his favour also vide Loan A/c. No. 4051864053 on dated 6.3.2020.  Initially, the O.P bank had sanctioned a loan amount of Rs.10,50,000/- in his favour enabling him to purchase the said plot.  Accordingly, the complainant had purchased the same which was registered in his favour on 13.3.2020. The money was paid by the O.P bank in shape of Demand Draft to the land owner from whom the land was purchased.  The O.P no.1 had also taken away the original sale-deed and the complainant had started repaying the said loan alongwith interest thereon with effect from 16.3.2020 and thereby had paid a sum of Rs.60,000/-.  Inspite of his repeated requests, the complainant was not provided with the loan sanction letter, loan agreement and other relevant documents for which he could not know the terms and conditions of the loan agreement.  After mutating the said purchased land, the ROR was published in favour of the complainant on 7.9.2020.  The complainant had thereafter applied with building plan for its approval from the BMC on 27.11.2020.  The said plan approval was delayed due to Corona pandemic and the O.P bank with a malafide intention had not released the balance amount of Rs.19,50,000/- which was meant for the construction of the house.  The O.P bank without releasing the balance amount, started threatening the complainant to close his loan account.  Having no other way out, the complainant had incurred a personal loan from the Axis Bank at a higher rate of interest @ 10.49% and had to close the loan account on 23.2.2022.  He had thereby paid a sum of Rs.11,50,000/- to the O.Ps in order to close his loan account and on 21.2.2022 the O.P bank had given him certificate of No Dues as regards to his loan A/c. No.4051864053.

          On 27.11.2020 the complainant could know about the approval of his building construction plan by the BMC but the complainant has alleged that due to the connivance and conspiracy of the staffs of the O.Ps, he could not get the No Due Certificate.  Thereafter on being persuaded by O.P no.1, the complainant had applied for a fresh loan of Rs.40,00,000/- where he had submitted all the original necessary documents to that effect including the original plan approved, original sale-deed, salary slip, Aadhar Card etc on 11.11.2022.  He had also signed the loan application documents.  The complainant has further alleged in his complaint petition that the O.P bank had tagged his fresh loan application with the previous non-existence and duly closed loan account bearing no. 4051864053 and had issued a letter to the Regional Processing Centre at Bhubaneswar on 29.11.2022 stating therein that the complainant had not availed the remaining loan of Rs.19,50,000/- towards construction of his house and had prematurely closed the loan account on 28.2.2022.  The O.P bank had further stated in the said letter that the complainant had to construct his house within two years from the disbursement of the loan or else, the entire loan is to be called back with interest RBLR + 8% per annum.  Thus, the complainant has alleged about such act of the O.Ps as unfair trade practice and alleges that they were deficient in their service for which he has filed this case seeking a sum of Rs.15,00,000/- from them towards deficiency in their service, another sum of Rs.4,00,000/- from them towards his mental agony and harassment and also to get return from them a sum of Rs.12,700/- alongwith interest thereon, which the O.Ps had deducted without his knowledge and consent.   He has also prayed seeking direction to the O.Ps to return all his original documents and to pay the cost of his litigation to the tune of Rs.37,300/- and he also has prayed for any other reliefs as deemed fit and proper.

          The complainant has filed copies of several documents in support of his case.

2.       Both the O.Ps have contested this case and have filed their written version jointly.  According to them, the case of the complainant is not maintainable which is bad for mis-joinder and non-joinder of necessary parties and barred by limitation and that the complainant has no cause of action to file this case.  They admit about the loan availed by the complainant towards purchase of his land at Bhagbanpur Mouza near Maa Santoshi Enclave at Mahadev Nagar pertaining to Plot no.1136/2151(sub-plot no.8) in Revenue Khata No.668/1069.  The house loan was sanctioned in favour of the complainant on 29.2.2020 for a sum of Rs.30,00,000/- out of which a sum of Rs.10,50,000/- was meant for purchase of the plot and the balance amount of Rs.19,50,000/- was meant for the construction of house consisting of G+1 (ground floor + first floor) on the purchased plot having Holiday period of 36 months and loan period of 360 months.  Accordingly, the loan A/c. No. 4051864053 was opened in CBS system on 6.3.2020 and a sum of Rs.10,50,000/- was disbursed in favour of the complainant towards purchase of the plot.  By executing the loan agreement, the complainant had agreed to abide by the terms and conditions therein and also to that of the sanction letter thereof.  He had to built up his house within two years from the disbursement of the loan otherwise it is to be called back alongwith interest @ base rate + 8% per annum.  The sanction letter was issued on 29.2.2020 which was duly signed by the complainant also.  The complainant had prematurely closed the loan account on 28.2.2022 and had taken the NOC.  The complainant had changed his earlier house building plan from G+1 to S+2 without informing the bank.  Thus, in toto, the O.Ps have alleged that the complainant who was serving as a Recovery Manager in the Legal Department of SREI Equipment’s Finance Ltd.,2^nd & 3^rd Floor House No.HIG, BDA Housig Colony,Jayadev Vihar, Bhubaneswar-751023 since from December,2014 had tactfully and prematurely closed the loan account and had collected the No Dues Certificate.  Thus, the petition as filed by him before this Commission is to be dismissed.

          The O.Ps have also filed several copies of documents in order to prove their stand.

          The complainant has filed his evidence affidavit in order to further his case but when the contents of his evidence affidavit were perused, it is noticed to be a replica of the averments as made in his complaint petition.  Similarly the O.Ps have also filed their evidence affidavit through one Subha Jyotshna Pradhan, Branch Manager of their Bank who has only reiterated the averments as made in the written version of the O.Ps.

3.       Keeping in mind the averments as made in the complaint petition and the contents of the written version of the O.Ps, this Commission thinks it proper to settle the following issues in order to arrive at a definite conclusion here in this case.

i.          Whether the case of the complainant is maintainable?

ii.         Whether there was any deficiency in service on the part of the O.Ps and if they have practised any unfair trade ?

iii.        Whether the complainant is entitled to the reliefs as claimed by him?

 

 

Issue no.II.

Out of the three issues, issue no.ii  being the pertinent issue is taken up  first for consideration here in this case.

After going through the averments of the complaint petition, contents of the written version, written notes of submission as filed by either sides, evidence of affidavit as filed from both the sides and also the copies of all the documents as filed from either sides, it is noticed that admittedly, the complainant Srimanta Dash was provided with a house building loan by the O.P bank with certain terms and conditions.  The complainant had applied for a house loan of Rs.30,00,000/- which was sanctioned by the O.P bank.  Out of which, a sum of Rs.10,50,000/- was meant towards the purchase of his plot and the balance amount of Rs.19,50,000/- was meant towards the construction of his house.  As per the terms and conditions, the borrower/complainant was to construct his house within two years of the sanction of his loan and as per the sanctioned plan and after completion of construction he was to produce affidavit-cum-undertaking showing that the built-up property has been constructed as per the sanctioned plan in order to recall the entire loan with interest, cost and other usual bank charges.  The land purchase amount was to be paid directly to the seller of the land and the rate of interest being floating rate, was to be changed as per the RBI guidelines subsequently.  It is also mentioned therein that the bank officials would be having periodical inspection of his construction work.  It is not in dispute that the O.P bank had issued No Due Certificate in favour of the complainant Srimanta Dash towards his loan A/C No. 4051864053 on 16.3.2022.  The complainant as it appears from the documents, had changed his plan of construction from G+1 to S+2 (Ground floor + First floor to Stilth+ First floor + second floor).  It is also made out that the complainant had applied for a fresh loan of Rs.40,00,000/- from the O.P bank and accordingly had deposited all the documents to that effect which was forwarded by the O.P No.1 to O.P no.2, the Regional Processing Centre,Bhubaneswar for its approval on 29.11.2022.  The plea of the complainant is that he had closed the loan A/c No. 4051864053 for which No Dues Certificate was issued to him on 16.3.2022.  But, one thing requires to be made clear here is that the house building loan as applied and obtained by the complainant had certain terms and conditions which were to be scrupulously followed and any breach thereof will entitle the party violating it to be put to trouble.  As per the terms and conditions of the said house loan, the complainant was to construct his house of G+1 within two years of availing the said loan which was sanctioned in his favour on 6.3.2020.   He could not avail the balance loan of Rs.19,50,000/- though sanctioned in his favour as because his house plan was not approved by the BMC promptly and the O.Ps have absolutely no role to play therein.  They were ready to disburse the balance house loan which was already sanctioned in favour of the complainant.  There is no single scrap of document in order to apprise this Commission that infact the complainant had constructed his house.  Rather, as it appears, that the complainant had applied for further loan after changing his plan from G+1 to S+2 and after closing down the previous loan hastily.  Thus, it is quite clear that the complainant though had prematurely closed the loan account and had obtained the No Dues Certificate, he had violated the terms and conditions of sanction of the house loan as made in his favour by the O.P bank on 29.2.2020.  The complainant has nowhere whispered that he had constructed his house within two years of the sanction of the loan and if he had submitted affidavit-cum-undertaking to the effect that his built-up property is as per the sanctioned plan as it is required to have been done according to the terms and conditions.  This clearly indicates that the complainant had violated the terms and conditions of the agreement through which he had obtained the loan and had thereby tried to hoodwink the bank he being a legally efficient person who has been working as the Recovery Manager in the Legal Department of SREI Equipment’s Finance Ltd.,2^nd & 3^rd Floor House No.HIG, BDA Housing Colony,Jayadev Vihar, Bhubaneswar-751023.   Thus, the No Dues Certificate as obtained by the complainant cannot be a garb for the complainant in order to give a departure to the terms and conditions of the loan agreement which he had executed after knowing fully well about such terms and conditions and had subsequently cunningly violated those wilfully.  Thus, this Commission in no way finds the O.Ps were deficient in their service or that they had practised unfair trade as because there is no lathes noticed on their part.  Hence, this issue goes in favour of the O.Ps.

Issues no.ii & iii.

          From the discussions as made above, the case of the complainant is not maintainable and the complainant is not entitled to any of the reliefs as claimed by him.

                                                          ORDER

          Case is dismissed on contest against the O.Ps and as regards to the facts and circumstances of the case without any cost.

Order pronounced in the open court on the 23^rd day of   August,2023 under the seal and signature of this Commission.         

                                                                                       Sri Debasish Nayak

                                                                                              President

                     

                                                                                                              

                                                                                    Sri Sibananda Mohanty

                                                                                             Member