Mumbai: A district consumer commission rejected a complaint against the deputy district collector (encroachment) of Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) stating that a social worker's demand for information cannot be treated as a consumer issue. The complainant had even filed a consumer complaint seeking compensation of Rs2.5 lakh when he didn't get the information he sought from them.
The order was passed by the district consumer disputes redressal commission (Mumbai suburban) on a complaint by Bandra resident Nadeem Khan. The social worker had sought information from MHADA under the Indian Evidence Act for public interest purposes.
The information sought was regarding a person against whom MHADA had issued notices and passed an order. For this, Khan attached a Rs100 postal order and asked for the information to be provided within seven days. MHADA replied saying they could not find the information he had sought. He then complained and sought an inspection for the same but didn't receive any response.
The commission observed that the MHADA office had clearly written to the complainant that information is not available and even returned the postal order money. It stated that since the money was returned and the person is a social worker who sought information for a public cause, he cannot be considered a consumer.
Further, the commission stated that Khan has also not explained how he fits into the definition of a “consumer” as per the Consumer Protection Rules, 2019. It added that if the body has not given a satisfactory reply, Khan can approach senior NHADA officers or the appropriate court while rejecting the complaint.
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