Baramulla District Commission Holds Religare Broking Ltd. Liable For Non-Closure Of Inactive Demat Account

Brief Background:

The complainant opened a demat and trading account with Religare Broking ltd. but never made any transactions through the said account. Only the amounts which were mandatory were maintained by him in his account. As a result, the complainant's account became inactive and only Annual Maintenance Charges (AMC) were deducted by the company. In August 2022, the complainant requested the company to close his inoperative demat account upon which he was asked to transfer a sum of Rs. 79/-. Despite successful transfer of the said amount, the company failed to close the demat account till December 2022. On raising the issue with the company, the complainant was again asked to pay a sum of Rs. 669/- for closure of the account which he refused to pay. The complainant thereafter attempted to communicate with the company on several occasions but did not receive any adequate response. Hence, he approached the consumer forum for due redressal of his grievances.

The company argued that the complainant is not a consumer under the Consumer protection Act since the account was opened for commercial purposes. It was argued that after payment of Rs. 79/- in the year 2022, the complainant was required to submit an online closure request which he failed to do so. An amount of Rs. 669/- was then demanded in the year 2024 which includes unbilled dues of Rs. 590/-. Failure of the complainant to pay these amounts led to his rejection of the closure request.

Observations:

The bench observed that the complainant approached the company for closure of his demat account and also paid the requisite fee. Despite payment, the account was not closed and he was asked to further pay a sum of Rs. 669/-. It was held that inaction on the part of the company to close the demat account after receiving the balance of Rs. 79/- amounts to 'deficiency in service'.

Thus, the complaint was allowed and the following directions were passed:

1. Company to close the demat account of the complainant
2. Refund of Annual Maintenance Charges (AMC) charged by the company from the date of closure request.
3. An amount of Rs. 15,000 to be paid by the company as compensation towards mental agony and harassment.

Case Title: Amit Pandita vs Aman Kumar (Manager), Religare Broking ltd.

Case Number: Consumer Complaint 32/2024

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