Bangalore: In a unique complaint, former Karnataka sports minister Goolihatti Shekar has filed a complaint against a smart phone company seeking compensation of Rs. 99,99,999 for causing inconvenience in services.
Goolihatti had bought a smart phone worth Rs. 38,493 on May 19, 2013 and had one year warranty with it. But according to the ex-minister when he faced some problems with his new phone he was asked to pay Rs. 18,000 for the repairs of the phone by the mobile company.
Therefore, Shekar filed a complaint claiming one of the largest compensation claims ever in a consumer court, i.e. Rs 99, 99,999. Any claim of Rs 1 crore and above has to be filed at the national consumer forum in New Delhi. Perhaps, that's why the former MLA chose to claim a rupee less.
According to the complaint filed by the ex-minister, he was facing some technical issues with the handset which he told the company to repair twice. But the company refused to do that both the times..
In fact Goolihatti had even asked the shopkeeper from where he had bought the phone to replace it. But even the shopkeeper said that he relies on the company for doing that and the company was not ready to replace the faulty handset. Therefore, the ex-minister dragged even the shop in this case.
Goolihatti's advocate, Shankrappa said, "The consumer was asked to pay for the repairs of his new phone, even though there was a warranty on it. He lost all his contacts and was subjected to harassment, humiliation and torture."
He added, "Millions of Indians buy mobile phones every day. We keep hearing our friends talking about problems with either handsets or service providers. But most people do not have the time or resources to approach courts. The former minister wanted to set an example and enlighten the public in this regard."
Shankrappa on behalf of his client said, "The device delivered to my client was ridden with manufacturing defects and the opposing parties have cheated the complainant by selling a defective instrument and refusing to replace it with a working one. Both the opposing parties have committed the offence of cheating."
