T.S.THAKUR, V.S.SIRPURKAR
Birla Technologies Ltd. – Appellant
Versus
Neutral Glass and Allied Industries Ltd. – Respondent
Certainly. Based on the provided legal document, here are the key points:
The case involves a dispute over the maintainability of a consumer complaint filed by a respondent against an appellant for deficiency in service related to software development and installation (!) (!) .
The appellant contended that the respondent was not a consumer within the meaning of the Consumer Protection Act, as the goods purchased and services hired were for commercial purposes (!) (!) .
The National Commission found that the goods (software modules) were purchased for a commercial purpose, thus excluding the respondent from the definition of a consumer under Section 2(1)(d)(i) of the Act (!) .
Despite this, the National Commission held that the respondent could maintain a complaint regarding deficiency in service during the warranty period under Section 2(1)(d)(ii), as it was filed before the amendment of the Act, which explicitly excludes services availed for commercial purposes (!) (!) .
The Court identified a crucial factual error: the National Commission's decision was based on the incorrect assumption that the complaint was filed before the amendment, whereas in fact, it was filed after the amendment came into effect. This significantly impacts the applicability of the exception for services availed for commercial purposes (!) (!) .
The Court emphasized that because both the goods were purchased and the services were availed of for a commercial purpose, the complaint was not maintainable under the Consumer Protection Act, especially after the amendment, which explicitly excludes such cases (!) .
The Court also noted that the respondent is free to pursue remedies through other legal avenues, such as filing a suit, and can avail of provisions that may exclude certain periods from limitation calculations (!) (!) .
Ultimately, the Court set aside the order of the National Commission and dismissed the complaint with costs, reaffirming that the complaint was not maintainable given the commercial nature of the transaction and the timing of the filing relative to the amendment (!) .
Please let me know if you need further clarification or assistance.
JUDGMENT
V.S. Sirpurkar, J. —
1. Leave granted.
2. This appeal is filed against the judgment passed by National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (hereinafter called ‘the National Commission” for short), allowing the First Appeal filed by the respondent herein holding that the complaint filed by the respondent herein was tenable relating to its grievance about the deficiency of service, under Section 2(1)(d)(ii) of The Consumer Protection Act, 1986 (hereinafter called “the Act” for short) as amended.
3. The appellant had sent a detailed proposal for developing certain computer software for the respondent at a cost of Rs.36 lacs on 11.2.1998. This proposal was accepted by the respondent who sent the letter of intent indicating its intention to entrust the appellant with the development of the said software. On 1.4.1998, the respondent sent a purchase order to the appellant regarding the terms and conditions at which the appellant was to develop the software for the respondent. That software was to take care of (1) Financial Accounting, (2) Production, (3) Marketing, (4) Purchase, (5) Stores/Inventory, (6) Fixed Assets, and (7) Pay Roll and Personnel System. The appellant wrote
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