Indian Judiciary may be one of the complex systems in the world. Hundreds of cases may be pending but here are three interesting cases in which consumer rights are uphold.
First case: South Korean car giant Hyundai Motors has been asked by the National Consumer Commission to pay Rs 6.8 lakh to a consumer for supplying a defective Accent car. Ruling that it is the duty of the car manufacturers to replace defective vehicles, the Commission said that in such cases, the companies are “not justified” in protracting litigation for years merely because they have money power. “Such defects may occur in one out of a thousand vehicles, but at the same time, it is the duty of the reputed and established manufacturer to replace such a vehicle,” said Commission president Justice M B Shah and member Rajyalakshmi Rao. Noting that a consumer would certainly be dissatisfied if a newly-bought car starts giving troubles within a few days of its purchase, the Commission said that it is the “duty” of the car companies to replace the vehicles if they are unable to rectify the defects. “By some measures or means, the tendency to accept the defects or faults is required to be encouraged. Otherwise, delay in disposal of such cases defeats the rights and the consumer gets frustrated,” the Commission noted, dismissing the petition of Hyundai against the State commission order. The Commission told the car maker to refund Sunny Malik, managing director of a central Delhi-based publication house, the defective vehicle’s cost (Rs 6.8 lakh) along with a compensation for harassment he faced while taking his 2004 model luxury car ‘Accent’ to the service station frequently.
Second case: The Delhi Consumer Commission told Hyundai Motors to refund Rs 3.55 lakh, along with damages of Rs 25,000, to Gopal K Sahi, whose brand new car turned out to be defective. The Commission also directed the car maker’s Paschim Vihar-based dealer, Deep Hyundai, to cough up Rs 1.55 lakh received from Sahi a couple of years ago on account of replacing his accidental car with a new one. Sahi, a resident of Vikaspuri here, had bought a Santro car in 1999 after paying over Rs three lakh. After his car met with an accident in January 2001, he approached the Hyundai dealer with a complaint that the car was damaged completely despite it being a minor mishap. But the response from the manufacturer was mute and hence he approached the Delhi consumer commission.
Third case: General Motors (GM) is directed by the Delhi Consumer Commission to pay Rs 3 lakh in compensation to G L Sanghi, whose car malfunctioned from the day of purchase itself. It all started in 1996, when Sanghi was not even offered genuine keys of the car. Only after eight months, he was able to receive the original key. But Sanghi’s nightmare is not yet over, he found a number of defects in his car, including low mileage and engine overheating, which made driving uncomfortable. He approached the car maker that was not the solution (he wrote as many as 16 letters to dealer and the manufacturer) but the ears remained unturned. In the mean while, he approached Delhi Consumer Commission in 1998 and lodged his complaint. The manufacturer denied any manufacturing defect in its car and contended the troubles experienced by Sanghi were owing to his driving style. But the commission found no substance in GM’s claim and held it guilty of deficiency in service for manufacturing and selling a defective vehicle.It asked GM to pay damages for the loss suffered in the value of the car, mental agony due to sale of defective car.