The main legal point established in the judgment is that the Banking Ombudsman loses jurisdiction once the subject matter of the complaint is taken to an adversarial forum, and the claims made must fall within the jurisdiction of the Ombudsman under the Scheme.

JUDGMENT

P.K. BALASUBRAMANYAN, J.

Leave granted.

1. The appellant, a partnership firm, sought a loan from the third respondent Bank for putting up a hotel. In April 1997, a loan of Rs. 15 lakhs was sanctioned by the Bank. The Bank disbursed a sum of Rs. 11,58,750/-. The appellant sought an additional advance. The proposal in that behalf was not accepted by the Bank The Bank recalled the loan after crediting Rs. 3,41,250/- out of the original loan sanctioned.

2. The appellant made a complaint before the Banking Ombudsman for the State of Bihar at Patna under clause 16 of the Banking Ombudsman Scheme, 1995. Clause 16 enabled any person, who had a grievance against the Bank, to make a complaint in writing to the Banking Ombudsman. The complaint had to be in writing and it had to be accompanied by supporting documents, if any, relied on by the complainant. It had also to set out the nature and extent of the loss caused to the complainant and the relief sought from the Banking Ombudsman and a statement about the compliance of the conditions referred to in that clause.

The appellant made the complaint about what it called the unauthorised or fraudulent withdrawal from the account of the appellant and the non credit of proceeds to the account of the appellant. It was contended that the crediting of Rs. 3,41,250/- or withdrawal thereof from the account of the appellant was unauthorised, and that the appellant had suffered considerable loss because of the delay on the part of the respondent Bank in advancing the loan and in not permitting the higher credit facility recommended in the Technical Cell Report binding on the Bank. By way of relief it was claimed that the Bank should further credit the remaining sanctioned loan to the account of the appellant. The total interest for the period should be exempted and there should be a direction to pay towards loss of the appellant a sum of Rs. 16.9 lakhs.

The respondent Bank opposed the complaint. The respondent Bank questioned the jurisdiction of the Banking Ombudsman to entertain such a complaint. It contended that the jurisdiction of the Banking Ombudsman was confined to certain matters specified in that behalf and the claims of the appellant were not within the purview of the Banking Ombudsman.

3. On 1.11.2000, the respondent Bank approached the Debts Recovery Tribunal constituted under the Recovery of Debts Due to Banks and Financial Institutions Act, 1993 (for short, "the Recovery of Debts Act") for recovery of amounts alleged to be due from the appellant. The compLaint of the Bank was numbered as O.A. No. 157 of 2000 and was being dealt with by the Tribunal.

4. Before the Banking Ombudsman, the Bank, inter alia, contended that the complaint of the appellant before him had ceased to be maintainable in view of the pendency of the proceedings before the Debts Recovery Tribunal and that, even otherwise, the claims raised by the appellant did not come within the purview of the Banking Ombudsman under the Banking Ombudsman Scheme, 1995. It was contended that the jurisdiction of the Banking Ombudsman was a limited one and the claims of the appellant were not those that could be entertained by him. The Banking Ombudsman brushed aside these contentions. He found that his jurisdiction was invoked by the appellant before the respondent Bank approached the Debts Recovery Tribunal with its claim and hence he was not precluded from adjudicating on the complaint of the appellant before him. He also brushed aside the objection of the respondent regarding his jurisdiction to entertain the complaint made by the appellant. The Banking Ombudsman is seen to have made some suggestions or recommendations to settle the dispute between the parties. They were not acceptable to the Bank. The Banking Ombudsman thereupon proceeded to pass an award directing disbursal of the sum of Rs. 3,41,250/- to the complainant and directing the Bank to make further advances in terms of the recommendations of the concerned Cell of the