Page 20 - Banking Finance March 2021

LEGAL UPDATE

lockers without the customers' Finding that there were no uniform judgment is passed along with the
knowledge or consent, it said. rules governing lockers, the bench laid operative order. We would like to
The apex court said that a customer is down 15-point guidelines. The SC said observe that in all matters where
completely at the mercy of the bank, these guidelines would remain in force reasons are yet to be delivered, it must
which is the more resourceful party, till the RBI framed new rules for locker be ensured that the same are made
for the protection of their assets. operations in six months. available to the litigating parties
positively within a period of two
Supreme Court asks UBI to Supreme Court slams months," it said.

pay Rs. 6 lakh for breaking NCDRC for delaying Complaints against banks,
open locker reasoned orders mobile banking to RBI

The Supreme Court ruled that breaking The Supreme Court has taken increase
open a customer's locker by a bank was exception to the practice of National The Reserve Bank of India released the
a serious breach of trust and ordered Consumer Disputes Redressal
annual report of its Ombudsman
United Bank of India to pay Rs.6 lakh Commission to pass brief orders
compensation to an aggrieved person without giving reasoning and then Scheme. For the first time, the central
bank is merging all its ombudsman
whose locker was broken open at a taking months to deliver a reasoned
Kolkata branch more than 25 years order. offices that used to separately cater to
banking, non-bank, and online
ago.
A bench headed by Justice Indu payments complaints into one unified
The bank informed Amitabha Malhotra said delay in delivery of scheme. The report covers the period
Dasgupta in 1995 that the locker had judgments amounts to violation of between July 1, 2019, and June 30,
been broken open and allotted to rights of the litigants and the problem 2020.
another person as the rent was not gets aggravated when the operative
paid for 1993-94. When Dasgupta portion is made available early and the There was an increase of 64.97 per
proved that he had paid rent for the reasons follow much later, or are not cent in the receipt of complaints under
previous year, the bank admitted its made available for an indefinite period the three ombudsman schemes, from
mistake. When the customer wanted as done in various cases in NCDRC. 200,362 in 2018-19 to 330,543 in 2019-
back the seven pieces of jewellery 20. Of these, 86.19 per cent were
"Undisputedly, the rights of the received electronically and via email.
deposited in the locker, the bank could
return only two. aggrieved parties are being prejudiced Disposal rate of more than 92 per cent
if the reasons are not available to them was achieved, according to the RBI.
The district consumer forum awarded
to avail of the legal remedy of The report said 72.27 per cent of the
Rs.3 lakh as cost of jewellery to
approaching the court where the maintainable complaints were
Dasgupta and an additional Rs.50,000
reasons can be scrutinised. It indeed resolved through mediation and
for mental agony, harassment and cost
amounts to defeating the rights of the conciliation. The major grounds of
of litigation. But the state consumer
party aggrieved to challenge the complaints were ATM/debit card
forum as well as the National impugned judgment on merits and
Consumer Disputes Redressal related, on mobile/electronic banking,
even the succeeding party is unable to and non-observance of fair practices
Commission awarded only Rs.30,000
obtain the fruits of success of the code.
compensation. Dasgupta appealed in
the SC. A bench of Justices M M litigation," the bench said. The north zone complained the most,
Shantanagoudar and Vineet Saran "Let this order be placed before the with 42.63 per cent of total received
ordered the bank to pay Rs.6 lakh, President of the National Consumer coming from there. Most of the
which included Rs.1 lakh as litigation Disputes Redressal Commission to look complaints originated from
cost, to Dasgupta and ordered that into the matter, and take necessary metropolitan areas, accounting for
Rs.5 lakh be recovered from erring steps so that this practice is nearly half of in 2019-20, according to
officials. discontinued, and the reasoned the RBI's report. T

20 | 2021 | MARCH | BANKING FINANCE