Consumer court orders BSNL to pay customer Rs 5,000 for connection delay

AHMEDABAD: A consumer court in Vadodara has ordered the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) to pay Rs 5,000 to a customer for not providing phone connection for nearly two months after the telephone was installed in his house.

The president of Jagte Raho Party, Parful Desai applied for a telephone connection on June 18, 2012 and a set was installed at his house in Raopura on June 26, within ten days. However, the the BSNL provided connection to him on August 6, 2012.

Desai sued BSNL for providing late connection and demanded that an exemplary cost of Rs 4.5 lakh be imposed on the telecom company. He submitted that the guidelines say that phone connection should be provided within a week's time, but BSNL took nearly two months in providing the facility.

After hearing him, the Vadodara district consumer dispute redressal forum directed BSNL to pay Desai Rs 5,000 for delay in providing phone connection, considered as deficiency in service.