Hamirpur (HP), May 13 The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission here on Wednesday sentenced the new owners and successors of a Ludhiana-based firm to one year of imprisonment each for selling a defective machine to the complainant.
The case pertains to a defective machine purchased in 2015 by Sumit Agnihotri, the proprietor of 'The Ads'. He had filed a complaint with the Commission after the machine malfunctioned.
On August 8, 2019, the Commission ordered the 'Hare Krishna Arts' to either replace the machine or refund the sum of Rs 8.16 lakh, inclusive of nine per cent interest. Additionally, directions were issued to pay Rs 25,000 as compensation for mental harassment and Rs 10,000 towards legal expenses.
In the course of the proceedings, the original proprietor of the firm, Vinod Kumar, passed away in November 2019. Subsequently, his wife, Pooja and his sons, Nitish and Naman, submitted before the Commission that the firm had ceased operations and that they could not be held liable.
However, the Commission found that the respondents were, in fact, continuing to conduct business under the name 'Hare Krishna Arts' and were capitalising on the firm's goodwill.
The Commission further noted that a payment of Rs 31,000 was accepted in the firm's name in June 2022, thereby confirming that the business was still operational.
According to the Commission, the attempt to cancel the GST registration was also made with the specific intent of evading legal action.
In their verdict, the Commission's president, Himanshu Mishra, along with members Sneh Lata and Joginder Mahajan, said that legal heirs are accountable not only for the profits derived from a business but also for the liabilities associated with it.
The Commission has also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 each on the three convicts. Failure to pay the fine will result in an additional six months of imprisonment.
However, the Commission said that if the guilty party complies with the original order of 2019 within 30 days, the punishment and fine will be set aside.
