RENUKA SEKHON Vs. AIR FRANCE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Mrs. Renuka Sekhon alongwith her daughter Miss Jaskimrin were to travel from New Delhi to Washington via Paris and London. The journey was to commence on 29.11.1996 from New Delhi and the return journey was to start on 12.1.1997 via Paris and Rome. The tickets were purchased from M/s. Jatair Pvt. Limited, Chandigarh, respondent No.2 for a sum of Rs.99,718/-. It has been alleged that when they reached New Delhi Airport for the onward journey they were informed that their names were deleted a day earlier. However, since they possessed pre-paid tickets, the claimants were ultimately allowed to take the flight but they were compelled to run hither and thither for all this despite the OK tickets. The main grievance of the complainants is that while coming back there was provision that they shall come via Rome and shall have considerable time to spend there yet they were deprived of it especially the daughter who was very keen to visit that historic city and it had a kind of educational value. The compensation claimed and mentioned in para 11 of the complaint is reproduced as under : (i)Compensation for depriving rs.5,00,000/-of the complainants to visit Rome which had created in-forgetable incident in their life. (ii)Deposit made at rome in advance rs.3,536/-from India for booking hotel, amount paid for visa and Medical insurance etc. (iii)Other expenses rs.5,000/- (iv)Mental torture, harassment while in rs.1,00,000/-journey of the opposite party through their Airlines. Rs.6,08,5367-

(2.) A reply has been filed on behalf of M/s. Air France, respondent No.1, wherein it has been averred that this Commission has no territorial jurisdiction inasmuch as even if there was any cause of action of missing a visit to Rome it accrued at Paris and not at Chandigarh. It has further been averred that the tickets number were not entered in their record till 25th November, 1996. The booking was automatically deleted from the Computer Data Base. The agent of the complainants who provided tickets to them has misled and played a fraud on them by placing sticker of OK on the ticket and asking them to proceed for their journey. It has further been averred that the complainants undertook the journey on a kind of un-confirmed ticket at their own risk. They were, however, accommodated by the answering respondent and all steps were taken that the complainants could travel from Paris to Washington though their particulars were not entered in the computer. Similar difficulties were experienced by the answering respondent at the time of the return journey. Instead of thanking the answering respondent for the hospitality and service extended, the complainants are using their own mistakes as grounds which do not afford justification for the claim put forward. The complainants purchased tickets from M/s. Care Travels with whom the answering respondent has no contractual or jural relationship nor they have any contractual connection with M/s. Bajaj Travels whose invoice featured during the proceedings. The complainants were themselves at fault because they did not seek re-confirmation and that the complaint should be dismissed.

(3.) The learned Counsel for the complainants has drawn our attention to the copies of the tickets Annexures 'a' to 'f' which show that the two complainants, the mother and the daughter possessed OK tickets for which they had paid price to their local agent. The fact that the price was paid and that it reached M/s. Air France before the start of the onward journey and backward journey, has not been denied. The complainants were of course put to inconvenience while taking the flight at New Delhi for onward journey though they possessed OK tickets. The learned Counsel for the complainants has stressed that when words OK were recorded in hand at the time the tickets were delivered the complainants were not required to contact the agent or the respondent again and again. The duty and liability of providing seats for the promised onward and backward journey was well established notwithstanding the fact that the tickets were purchased through the agents.