In a recent order issued by the Chairman of the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Sanjeev Jindal, it has been ruled that Axis Bank must return the amount of Rs 51 lakh to the account holder, Mukta Malhotra. This decision comes after it was discovered that the account manager, Rajiv Sharma, had fraudulently withdrawn the funds from Mukta Malhotra’s account by forging her signature.
Compensation and Legal Expenses
In addition to the principal amount of Rs 51 lakh, the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has also directed Axis Bank to pay nine percent interest on the withdrawn amount. Furthermore, the bank has been ordered to compensate Mukta Malhotra with Rs 2 lakh for mental stress caused by the incident, as well as Rs 22,000 for legal expenses incurred during the legal proceedings.
Background of the Case
Mukta Malhotra, the owner of South Asian Apparel Resource located on Khandsa Road, filed a petition with the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission outlining the fraudulent activities of her account manager, Rajiv Sharma. Rajiv was responsible for managing the company’s Axis Bank account and had transferred a total of Rs 51.75 lakh from the company’s account to a firm named Priyanka Design, which was owned by his wife.
On April 15, 2019, Mukta Malhotra discovered the unauthorized withdrawals when she received a notification from Axis Bank about the transactions. It was revealed that Rajiv had been withdrawing funds from the account over a period of time by forging signatures on cheques.
Investigation and Bank’s Response
Upon receiving the complaint, the Police Commissioner ordered an investigation, and on July 9, 2019, a case was registered at the Sector-10 police station under various sections of the law. The investigating officer recovered cheques with fake signatures from both Axis Bank and Bank of Baroda and issued a notice to Axis Bank to participate in the investigation.
However, Axis Bank failed to cooperate with the investigation and did not provide any evidence or communication, such as messages or emails, to support their claim that they had informed Mukta Malhotra about the fraudulent activities.
Commission’s Decision
After considering the evidence and hearing arguments from both parties, the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission concluded that Axis Bank was at fault in this matter. An examination of the signatures on the cheques by a handwriting expert, as ordered by the court, confirmed that the complainant’s signature did not match those on the fraudulent cheques.
Therefore, the Commission ruled in favor of Mukta Malhotra and ordered Axis Bank to pay her the principal amount of Rs 51.75 lakh, along with nine percent interest. The bank was also directed to pay Rs 2 lakh for mental stress caused by the incident and Rs 22,000 for legal expenses.