ASHOK CHHABRA vs BRANCH MANAGER, HARYANA FINANCIAL CORPORATION

THE unsuccessful complainant appeals against the order of the District Forum, Hisar non-suiting him on the threshold ground that the lis did not come within the sphere of the Act.

WE are firmly of the view that the order under appeal has to be up-held and consequently it is unnecessary to delve too deeply into the facts and merits in an order of affirmance. It suffices to mention that it is common ground that the appellant had purchased the United Oil Mills, Hisar for a sum of Rs. 6,75,000/- on the 25th of September, 1990 in an open auction conducted by the Haryana Financial Corporation. The requisite amount of the bid at Rs. 1,50,000/- was duly deposited. However, subsequently the owner of the said mill challenged the auction and filed a civil suit seeking stay of the sale. Aggrieved thereby, the appellant came forward to withdraw the bid money, which was duly done. In the complaint, he sought the relief of interest on the refunded amount. The respondents in stoutly defending the complaint, forcefully took up the threshold objection that the matter was not covered by the Act and the appellant was not a consumer and further no interest under the terms of the sale could be claimed by him.

The District Forum forth-rightly held that the dispute did not come within the ambit of either a sale of goods or a hiring of services and being thus outside the sphere of the Act, it declined to entertain the complaint, leaving the appellant to his ordinary remedy at law.

MR. Ashok Chhabra, the appellant who projected his case in person being a lay man was somewhat off the mark in the context of the niceties of the consumer law with regard to the definition of a complainant and the limited sphere of purchase of goods and hiring of services etc. It was sought to be argued that the Haryana Financial Corporation, which had put the immovable property to auction had done so primarily for the failure to pay the loans and the interest and consequently the appellant was also entitled to interest on the deposited bid amount. The submission aforesaid has only to be noticed and rejected. Plainly enough, the case herein is not even remotely one of the hiring of services. Yet again on the appellant''s own showing, he had purchased property for a sizeable amount of Rs. 6,75,000/- only. It is some what elementary that the United Oil Mill premises & appendages thereto would be immovable property, which cannot by any stretching be brought within the ambit of the definition of goods under the Act. Plainly enough, the dispute herein cannot possibly fall within the parameters of the consumer jurisdiction and the District Forum was plainly right in holding to the same effect.

THE order of the District Forum is hereby affirmed and consequently the appeal is dismissed without any order as to costs. Appeal dismissed.