SHASHIBALA M. SHARMA Vs. ICICI BANK LTD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present Complaint has been filed alleging that the Complainant has been appointed as the Executor of the will of late Aditya Jagmohan Sharma. It is submitted that as per his will dated 25.09.2003, the Complainant was required to establish a trust in the name and style of Aditya Jagmohan Sharma Social Welfare Trust ("said trust") and thereafter, it was ordered that the entire immovable and movable properties of late Aditya Jagmohan Sharma shall vest in the trust which shall be used thereafter for the welfare of orphans and under-privileged children. After the probate of the said will was given to the Complainant on 07.03.2011, she established the said trust in December 2011. She wrote several letters to Opposite Party to transfer the funds lying in the saving accounts maintained by late Aditya Jagmohan Sharma in the account of the said trust. The Opposite Party however, did not take any action and also did not respond to her legal notice. She even approached the Banking Ombudsman of RBI Ahmedabad through her Complaint dated 30.10.2012. The opposite party vide letter dated 21.12.2012 asked the complainant to supply the original documents for verification by the Branch Manager which she promptly supplied on 07.02.2013. She had also filed the certified copy of those documents, despite that, the money lying in the saving bank account no.002401007358 was not transferred to the account of the Trust. The demat account bearing client ID No.11542064 in the name of late Aditya Jagmohan Sharma, maintained with the Opposite Party was also not transferred in favour of the trust. Believing that the contempt petition before the court which had granted the probate would be a proper remedy, she filed the contempt application bearing No.CMA 55/13 on 10.06.2013. The Opposite Party filed its written statement on 16.05.2014 in the said contempt application. It is submitted that when she learnt that she had filed the case in a wrong forum, she withdrew the said contempt petition with liberty to approach the appropriate forum and this liberty was given to her on 10.10.2017. Thereafter, she immediately approached the forum. On these contentions, it is prayed that the Opposite Party be directed to transfer all the deposits along with approved interest in the saving account bearing no.002401007358 in the name of late Aditya Jagmohan Sharma and also the shares and securities held by him in the demat account client ID No.11542064 and also to pay Rs.10 Lakhs as compensation for the loss of opportunity to use the said money and shares/securities and Rs.15 Lakhs as compensation to the Complainant for mental agony and harassment.

(2.) The notice of the Complaint was duly served upon the Opposite Party. The Opposite Party, however, did not attend the proceedings before this Commission and they were proceeded ex parte vide order dated 13.02.2019.

(3.) The Complainant led her evidence.