IN THE DELHI STATE CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION Date of Institution: 16.04.2024 Date of Hearing: 23.10.2024 Date of Decision: 29.11.2024 FIRST APPEAL NO.-273/2024 IN THE MATTER OF CENTRAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES WELFARE HOUSING ORGANIZATION AT: 6TH FLOOR, ‘A’ WING, JANPATH BHAWAN, JANPATH, NEW DELHI-110001 …APPELLANT (Through: Mr. Deepak Arora, Advocate Mob.9811941190 &

Email : dpk_arora24@yahoo.co.in)

VERSUS MR. BHAGWAN SINGH H.NO. 5/38, GALI NO.1, SHANKER GARDEN, LINE PAR, NEAR RAVIDAS MANDIR, BAHADURGARH, HARYANA-124507, EMAIL ID: bschauhan1948@gmail.com MOBILE NO. 9015611190 ….RESPONDENT (Through: Ms. Saloni Dwary & Mr. Anuj Chauhan, Advocates, Mob. 9582076753, 9810731674 &

Email: info@aualegal.com &

anuj@aualegal.com)

CORAM:

HON’BLE JUSTICE SANGITA DHINGRA SEHGAL (PRESIDENT)

HON’BLE MS. PINKI, MEMBER (JUDICIAL)

Present: Mr. Deepak Arora and Ms. Shobha Bisht, counsel for the Appellant.

None for the Respondent.

PER : HON’BLE PINKI, MEMBER (JUDICIAL)

JUDGMENT

1. The present appeal has been filed on 16.04.2024 impugning the order dated 14.03.2024 passed by the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission-VI (New Delhi District), M- Block, 1st Floor, Vikas Bhawan, I.P. Estate, New Delhi-110002, in CC No.12/2024 vide which defence of the Appellant/Opposite Party to file reply/written statement has been closed. The order reads as under: “Written statement filed, copy supplied.

Counsel for complainant states that copy of complaint and documents were supplied to counsel for OP on 15.01.2024 as such the written statement of OP which has been filed beyond the statutory period, cannot be taken on record. In view of the submission made and in view of section 38 (3) (a) of Consumer Protection Act, 2019, the defence of OP stand struck off.

To come up for filing CE and brief synopsis by parties on

06.05.2024.”

2. Aggrieved by the aforesaid order the appellant has filed the present appeal inter-alia contending that the Ld. District Commission failed to consider that the appellant was considering the respondent/complainant request to settle the case amicably on humanitarian ground being senior citizen by which the written statement was not filed within specific period and that the non- filing of reply was neither intentional but was due to genuine reasons.

3. Vide order dated 20.09.2024, counsel for the respondent did not wish to file reply to the appeal.

4. Both the parties have filed their short written submissions.

5. We have carefully perused the material on record.

6. The only question for consideration before us is whether the District Commission was right in closing the defence of the Appellant/OP.

7. To resolve this issue, we deem it appropriate to refer to the Section 38(2)(a) of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 which provides as under:

“Section 38(2): Where the complaint relates to any goods, the District Commission shall,-

(a) refer a copy of the admitted complaint, within twenty- one days from the date of its admission to the opposite party mentioned in the complaint directing him to give his version of the case within a period of thirty days or such extended period not exceeding fifteen days as may be granted by it;”

8. A perusal of the above statutory provision reflects that the written statement is to be filed by the Appellant/OP within thirty days or such extended period not exceeding fifteen days as may be granted by the Consumer Commission. Thus, for getting the benefit of extended 15 days period, an application for extension of 15 days period has to be filed before the District Commission. However, in the present case, from the record we find that no such application for extension of time in filing the written statement has been filed by the Appellant /OP before the District Commission.

9. In the present case, it is an admitted fact that on 15.01.2024 when the appearance was put on behalf of the appellant/opposite party, copy of complaint alongwith documents was supplied to them to file written statement. It is submitted that the Dist