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My father passed away recently. He had registered a Will with local municipality about our ancestral house. Is it compulsory to probate the Will? Municipality in question is Srivilliputhur in Tamil Nadu.

Question to the lawyers on the forum: Could someone please point me to the law that prevents media from disclosing the names of rape survivors? Why can't the media mention the names of these victims - ever? Are these legal constraints or social/cultural constraints?
https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/05/asia/...ntl/index.html

It breaks my heart to see these people pass away as nameless people, and be forgotten. Also, I think the police can hold a press conference and name the 5 thugs accused of the crime. I have seen this happen, but in a timeline I do not understand. Can someone shed some light?

A layman responds...
I don't know, I am not a lawyer, but I believe it is to protect them in the future.

Good point. And at this tragic stage, they are murder victims, not survivors of rape.

Even so, remember that we still live in a society where victim blaming is a big thing. Maybe they can rest in greater peace unidentified to the world.

What do our better-informed/professional members think, legally and ethically?

Go through Section 228-A IPC.

Additionally Supreme court in various cases have held that the identity of the victim of certain offences cannot be revealed and 228-A is an inescapable section.

Also, once the Supreme Court interprets a particular section and gives judgement on it, the High Courts of all states pass guidelines for their respective lower courts to follow.

From the back of my mind I think its the Nipun Saxena case of 2018 where the SC has again touched various aspects of 228-A and beyond.

Case category: Consumer dispute

Situation: Vehicle went to service center for random loss in power while driving and taking longer to crank. Diagnosis carried out by ASC involved removal and refitting of flywheel. Flywheel was not faulty and did not contribute to the problem. Fault was with ECM (engine control module). Problem fixed.

While flywheel was opened as part of their diagnosis, clutch plate replacement (though not immediately required) was carried out as a preventive maintenance measure.

While taking delivery, the owner points out abnormal noise from engine. Follows up the same complaint over 3 consecutive visits to the service center. On the 4th visit the service center opens up the flywheel and says that the flywheel bearings have gone bad and need replacement.

Owner's point of contention: Removal and re-fitment of flywheel was not required to rectify the ECM fault. As a result, disturbing the original fitment has caused its immediate failure of the flywheel and the owner is being asked to boot the bill.

Question for lawyers: Does this case have enough merit to be fought out in the consumer court?

Cost involved: 40K + labour for new flywheel + 5K for master cylinder

The merits of the case would essentially depend upon whether the owner has materials/ evidence on record to establish the chain of events including bills/ work order to establish the work carried out in first visit. It will be important whether the owner reported issue of engine noise in writing or is it borne out of the job card for the next three visits and the observation in the fourth visit. Any email/ text communication with service advisor or the workshop would be helpful. The merits can be evaluated accordingly.

If there is no written communication as yet, it may be advisable to send out a detailed email placing on record the exact sequence of events with dates and also bringing the same to the notice of the manufacturer. Liability for the cost of repairs should be categorically denied and claim for the same along with compensation be made. Depending on the approach, a cost benefit analysis can be made as to whether it would be worthwhile to take the claim to the consumer forum. Also before resorting to a consumer complaint, the option of issuing a legal notice may also be evaluated, which may just do the job.

I have detailed out the sequence in an e-mail complaint to the manufacturer. The case was assigned to a Customer Service personnel sitting in Kolkata. He never replies back in writing but has the conversation over telephone only. I made it a point to send a return e-mail after every conversation summarizing the telephone call to which he neither replies nor acknowledges. Finally I was offered a paltry discount which could be considered but it is not there in writing. Meanwhile after the discussion on the discount I got a message from the service center to collect the vehicle as repairs have been carried out on paid basis. I have communicated to the assigned personnel that I do not agree to the repairs being carried on paid basis and have sent them the copy of the e-mail which was the only e-mail from the service center / dealer since I lodged a complaint.

They have been over cautious in not having any written communication till date.

We however have a whats app messages that state that the flywheel was removed for inspection and refitted after it was found to be okay. It failed soon after.

In this background, it may be advisable to send out a consolidated email joining the entire sequence of events and attributing fault at their end. In the said communication, you can raise claim on cost of repairs and also hold them liable for warranty for an year or so so as to cover up for any incidental issues in near future. If that does not work, you can send them a legal notice claiming compensation for deficiency in services. Depending on their approach, you may consider a consumer action.

Thanks for your suggestions. It has been resolved amicably.

We spoke to the service center and explained our situation and all the back an forth we had in writing regarding this issue. They agreed to bear half the cost of the flywheel and a free master cylinder. Which was the last resort offered by us before serving a legal notice to them.

Great! That's very heartening to know.

Hi all,

I had booked a flat in Pune around 4 years back.
At the time of booking, the builder promised us the possession by Dec 2018.
In the agreement, he changed the posession date to March 2019, saying that it's just that he's adding 3 months of buffer if things go out of control, which we didn't mind.

Later, when RERA came into effect we saw the same date of possession on RERA website, so no alarms there.
But the progress of the construction was too slow, and it was sure that he was bound to miss the 31 March 2019 deadline.

So, the builder got the deadline revised to 31/12/2019.
Still, the speed at which they were working wasn't satisfactory and obviously he has missed the 31/12/2019 deadline too.
The building is almost ready, but it looks it'll take at least a couple of months for it to be liveable (the amenities like garden/gym/clubhouse are not in sight yet).

Now, we see that he has again revised the completion date in RERA website to 30/06/2020.

So my questions to the lawyers on the forum is:
1. How can RERA allow the builder to extend the completion date whenever he wishes?
2. Is there any way we can hold him accountable & ask for compensation (given that the new date of completion is 30 June now)?
3. Can we approach consumer forum/court?
4. The builder is asking us maintenance charges for two years (till the society is formed), but I am of the opinion of not paying him anything till all amenities are ready. Is this a valid ask?

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks!

Under RERA, once a completion date has been declared, it can be extended by a maximum of 1 year with approval from the RERA authority amd only for a valid reason like forfe majeure, etc.

If the date extension has been approved, must've been under an order that should be part of the RERA filings for the project. If not, you can write to RERA authority and ask for a copy.

Yes, you can go to consumer court but notbsure if it will be worth your while considering delays, etc.

You can ask for compensation from the date of delivery as per your agreement. If he doesn't agree, you can ask for cancellation where he has to refund your amount with interest.

Maintenance is a separate thing altogether. It is a general practice for builders to ask for maintenance in advance for certain period as they want to keep the property in shining condition even post OC till entire inventory is sold. You are paying for maintenance for 2 years in advance. Normally, the clock starts on OC or posession. As part of settlement of accounts with the society, he has to transfer balance amounts to society and give hisab of exps incurred till that time.

This is one for the Lawyers.

A friend of mine recently quit his company, served his notice period, handed over his work, but the company has not yet paid his full and final settlement. They had said that they would settle it and he would receive it in 45days; that was supposed to be 27-Dec-19. After numerous follow-ups, there doesn't seem to be any action being taken.

He wrote to the founder of the company and he in turn instructed the HR to get it sorted at the earliest, but still no action was taken (looks like internal passing the parcel). Now the founder won't even take his calls.

HR said that she was on vacation and asked my friend to wait till salary day (05-Jan-20), but nothing; other employees have received their salary, but my friend is still waiting on his final settlement.

What can be done in this scenario? Who can help?

While matters like this are eventually sorted out, it requires quite a bit of follow up, especially in case of startups who are in perpetual cash crunches (or so they say). Ask your friend to keep following up aggressively. If that really does not work, then the next option is to consider formal legal action and shoot a legal notice to the company asking for immediate repayment of arrears. Often times, this is all that it takes to ensure that the money comes hurtling into the said employee's bank account :D

A caveat: this also implies lawyer's costs on the part of the employee (at the very least, for drafting and issuing the legal notice), and is worth it if the amount of arrears in question is significant enough. Otherwise, of legal costs are not worth incurring for the employee, nothing else to do but follow up and hope for the best.

If the amount is over 1 lakh rupees, wich I suppose it would be, you are advised to approach under IBC in all probability. The case will be settled in the blink of an eye. I have got one such case resolved recently.