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NATIONAL CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION, NEW DELHI
V.B. Gupta, Presiding Member and Mrs. Rekha Gupta, Member
Krishan Kumar Batra —Petitioner
versus
Punjab National Bank through its
Branch Manager —Respondent
Revision Petition No. 806 of 2013
(From the order dated 17.01.2013 of the Punjab State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Chandigarh in Appeal no. 163 of 2012)
Decided on 21.2.2014
Counsel for the Parties:
For the Petitioner: In person.
IMPORTANT POINT
Bank can recover loan amount from terminal benefits of ex-employee.
Headnote:Consumer Protection Act, 1986—Sections 15, 17, 19 and 21—Banking—Housing loan—Deduction from salary and PF amount—Complaint dismissed by Fora below—Petitioner/ complainant availed loan of Rs.6.00 lakh which was being deducted from his monthly salary—After his termination, since his salary stopped, repayment of installments also stopped—He paid no further installments and became defaulter—Bank was compelled to recover amount due from his terminal benefits as per undertaking given by him—There is nothing on record to show that petitioner and his wife had made joint application to Bank to recover balance amount from her salary after his termination—There is also no joint complaint against action of Bank or prayer to Consumer Fora from both petitioner and his wife that balance amount of loan should be deducted from his wife’s salary—Petitioner has failed to prove deficiency of service against respondent bank—Revision Petition dismissed with cost of Rs.5,000/-. (Paras 24 to 28)
Mrs. Rekha Gupta, Member—Revision petition no. 806 of 2013 has been filed against the order dated 17.01.2013 of the Punjab State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Chandigarh (‘the State Commission’) in First Appeal no. 163 of 2012. The brief facts of the case are that the petitioner/ complainant was an employee of Punjab National Bank (PNB) and he remained posted at Lawrence Road Branch, Amritsar of the aforesaid Bank. Smt Madhu Batra wife of the petitioner was also an employee of PNB and the petitioner and his wife had jointly obtained a housing loan of Rs.6,00,000/- from their employer, i.e., PNB which was repayable in equal monthly instalment of Rs.5850/- per month.
2. The respondent Bank started deducting monthly instalments from the salary of the petitioner. However, due to certain disputes between the petitioner and the employer, the enquiry of which is pending, the bank officials stopped the salary of the petitioner and due to this reason, the housing loan instalments was also stopped.
3. Since the very inception of the petitioner in the service of the Bank, provident fund was being deducted from the salary of the petitioner and the petitioner has the right to get regular statements from the bank to know about the amount outstanding to his credit on amount of provident fund. The petitioner on 24.02.2007 demanded statement of account of provident fund from the bank but it was not provided to him and it was on the direction of Central Information Commissioner that the respondent – Bank provided the statement of account in respect of provident fund to the petitioner on 04.07.2009 and to his utter surprise, the petitioner found from the statement of account came to know that the amount of Rs.5,81,334.74 has already been paid by the petitioner and that the respondent has illegally and unlawfully deducted Rs.5,81,334.74 from the provident fund account of the petitioner despite the fact that the petitioner has not withdrawn even a single penny from his provident fund account.
4. Thereafter the petitioner made enquiries from the respondent bank and came to know that the respondent itself has withdrawn the aforesaid amount of Rs.5,81,334.74 from the provident fund account no. 48097 of the petitioner in two instalments, i.e., Rs.5,81,334.74 paisa and Rs.24,038.40 paisa and credited the same in the joint housing loan account of the petitioner and his wife.
5. The provident fund amount is the property, social security for old age of the employee (petitioner) and the respondent has no right to deduct any amount from the provident fund account of the petitioner and to adjust the same towards the housing loan account in the name of the petitioner and his wife. The respondent has neither given any notice or intimation to the petitioner before withdrawing the amount from the provident fund account of the petitioner and adjusting the same towards the loan account of the petitioner and his wife nor any opportunity was given to the petitioner nor the explanation of the petitioner was sought before withdrawing the amount from his P F account much less written consent of the petitioner was obtained for such purpose. As submitted above, the housing loan was jointly obtained by the petitioner and his wife from the respondent Bank at the maximum, the respondent could deduct monthly instalment of loan from the salary of the wife of the petitioner who is a co-loanee and her liability was joint and several with the petitioner or at the most can recover from the petitioner due course of law if so required.
6. It was, therefore, prayed as under:
* The respondent may kindly be directed to transfer the amount of Rs.5,81,334.74 paisa and Rs.24,038.40 paisa to the provident fund account of the petitioner with interest @ 18% per annum from the date of withdrawal till its transfer.
* The cost of the complaint and counsel fee may also be awarded to the complainant.
* Compensation of Rs.1,00,000/- be also awarded to the petitioner.
* Any other relief
