Consumer forum asks Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation to pay Rs 1.5 lakh to consumer

The Thane district consumer forum recently penalised the Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation (MBMC) for failing to provide the promised services to one of its consumers. The forum thus directed the MBMC to pay a compensation of Rs 1.5 lakh to the complainant towards the mental agony caused to her due to its negligent behaviour.

As per the forum's order copy, Snehalata Pawar, a resident of Bhayander had approached the MBMC seeking permission to enter into a lease agreement with the civic body in order to start a milk distribution centre. As per Pawar, she approached MBMC and paid an amount of Rs 4,740 to start her business and thus entered into a contract. Accordingly, in May 2007, she was allotted a space within the civic body's jurisdiction to start a stall. Pawar started her stall by spending an amount of Rs 50,000. However, a month later, MBMC issued her a notice, asking her to vacate the space within a period of nine days, failing which the stall would be destroyed. Pawar, however, wrote to the MBMC asking them to allot her a alternative space. In November 2007, she was allotted a new space.

However, the entire incident was repeated in 2008. In July 2008, when she was relocated, the encroachment department of MBMC, approached the stall and destroyed it even when she had the permissions on record. Aggrieved by the civic body's behaviour, she approached the Thane consumer forum and filed a complaint.

The forum, after going through the complaint copy, asked the MBMC to file its reply. The civic body in its reply claimed that they were not at fault. The forum, after going through the evidence, found that the civic body was in
fact at fault and thus penalised MBMC body for the same.