SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, April 28: The court of the District Consumer Redressal Commission has issued a ‘Distress Warrant’ against the president, secretary and treasurer of the Dhanbad Bar Association on the complaint of a lawyer Vijay Kumar over the non-implementation of an order.
The Commission had in 2018 directed the then Bar Association office-bearers to either allot the chamber to lawyer Rajiv Kumar or refund his money with 8.50 % interest rate.
Three committees of Bar Association office-bearers have changed so far but neither the chamber has been allotted nor the money has been refunded.
The full bench of District Consumer Redressal Commission under chairman Lalit Prasad Choubey while hearing the petition of victim lawyer Vijay Kumar on Thursday issued a ‘Distress Warrant’ against the Bar Association president, secretary and treasurer. Chandrashekhar Jha (male) and Shipra (female) were two other members of the Commission.
The Bar Association has already filed a petition for a stay in the State Consumer Redressal Commission against the order of the District Commission.
The matter is 8 years old.
Interestingly at present, the committee of the Dhanbad Bar Association is defunct following the completion of the outgoing committee’s tenure on March 26, 2023. Three members election committee comprising Advocates AC Mallik, Devisharan Sinha and Arun Kumar Tiwary are at present running the association.
A senior lawyer of the District Consumer Redressal Commission said in 2018 that lawyer Rajiv Kumar had filed a case in the district Consumer Forum alleging that in 2015 he deposited Rs 1.5 lakh for the chamber. The then Bar Association officials allotted chambers to 37 lawyers but he was neither allotted the chamber nor refunded deposited money.
The court of consumer Forum on April 12, 2018, ordered the then committee of the Bar Association either to allot the chamber to lawyer Rajiv Kumar or refund his deposit with 8.50% interest within 45 days of the order.
Interestingly when the Consumer Forum issued the order, the committee of the Bar Association changed after some days. The new committee of Bar reportedly agreed to allot a chamber to Rajiv Kumar but negotiation failed on the size of the chamber.
Finally, Rajiv Kumar again appealed to the District Consumer Redressal Commission for the implementation of the 2018 order. The Consumer Court on Friday ( April 27, 2023) issued a Distress Warrant against the officials of the Bar Association.
