A Dadar-based shopkeeper was fined Rs 11,260 by the Consumer Court on Wednesday for ruining a kid’s Diwali last year with a defective garment
The Novelty shop at Dadar (West) Pic/Rane Ashish
The incident
Kurla resident Subhash Tandel had bought a shirt, jacket and pair of jeans worth Rs 1,260 for his son, from Novelty Diapers in Dadar, last year. On Laxmi Puja, November 11, the boy wore the clothes for the first time, only to find them torn. Tandel immediately took it to Novelty Diapers and requested them to replace the clothes, but they refused. Sources said, an argument ensued, following which Tandel alleged the shopkeeper misbehaved with him.
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Tandel said a notice was also sent to the shop, but they did not revert to it. Finally, on February 4, Tandel approached the Consumer Court and filed a complaint against the shopkeeper for selling him defective clothes.
However, replying to the court’s notice, Novelty Diapers claimed the garment wasn’t torn when it was sold. They added that as the stitches had come out, they had offered to re-stitch it, but Tandel insisted on a replacement.
The verdict
Seven months later, judge BS Wasekar and member HK Bhaise of District Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum, Central Mumbai, ruled in favour of the complainant and ordered the shopkeeper to refund Rs1,260 to Tandel, along with interest at 9% per annum. The court also ordered him to pay Rs5,000 for mental agony and Rs5,000 as cost of legal proceedings.
Wasekar said, “If stitches are loose in a new set of clothes, it’s the responsibility of the shopkeeper to replace the clothes. The complainant purchased the clothes for his son on the occasion of Diwali. He could not enjoy the festival because of the defect in the clothes.” The judge added that there was no point in replacing the clothes now as the boy has grown in height.
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