INDIAN OVERSEAS BANK Vs. JAGBANDHU GHOSH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) COUNSEL for parties present. Arguments heard. Having lost the case before both the Fora below, the petitioner has chosen to file the present revision petition before this Commission. The complainant Shri Jagbandhu Ghosh was enjoying banking facilities with the Indian Overseas Bank (OP no. 1). He lost some signed cheques and he immediately applied for issuance of new cheque -book with a request to stop payment in respect of the lost cheques. Pursuant to that, petitioner bank issued new cheque -book in favour of the complainant, but subsequently honored one of the cheques amounting to Rs.3,65,000/ - in favour of third party i.e. Sajal Das. It clearly shows negligence, inaction and passivity on the part of the bank. When there was clear -cut direction to stop payment of the lost cheques, even then cheque was honored in favour of third party.

(2.) THE counsel for petitioner vehemently argued that this is a commercial transaction. He invited my attention towards the statement of account, which shows that the complainant was having account in lakhs of rupees.

(3.) THIS must be borne in mind that complaint was filed in the individual name of Jagbandhu Ghosh and it was not filed by a firm or a partnership firm or a company. If it was commercial transaction, the OPs should have proved that he was running business activities and a number of persons were employed under him. Both the Fora have already come to the conclusion that the complainant was a "consumer". I, therefore, clap no value with it.