The Ernakulam Consumer Court has ordered a private tiles company and the suppliers to pay Rs 17.83 lakh to veteran actor Harisree Ashokan for supplying defective tiles to his residence, ‘Punjabi House’, named after the super hit movie. According to the complainant, he had purchased floor tiles worth Rs 2.75 lakh from Peekay Tiles Centre in Ernakulam. While the tiles were imported by Kerala AGL World, N S Marble Works paved the tiles at his residence for Rs 1 lakh.
The court order states that the owners of the companies had tricked Ashokan into buying faulty tiles, promising that the tiles were of international quality and perfect in interior spaces. However, his dream home soon turned into a nightmare, when the tiles began to crack and break, within a month of installation. Mud and water began seeping up through the cracks between the tiles.
When Ashokan informed N S Marble Works about the issue, the contractor blamed the suppliers maintaining that the tiles were of poor quality. Following this, he approached the suppliers, asking them to replace the tiles. Despite repeated complaints, the suppliers failed to address the issue satisfactorily, nor did they replace the broken tiles. Ashokan then took legal action and filed a suit at the Ernakulam District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission.
Meanwhile, the opposite parties argued that the complainant didn’t have solid proof about the poor quality of tiles in his residence nor did he possess any evidence of purchasing the product from them. They also maintained that the actor did not have the warranty documents. However, the commission noted that the opposite parties had deceived the complainant without providing the invoice and warranty documents. The court added that they had violated his basic right to information as guaranteed by the Consumer Protection Act. The appellate body also observed that the parties had indulged in unjust business dealings and poor service. The bench led by president D B Binu and members Vaikom Ramachandran and TN Sreevidya observed that the unjust act of the opposite parties had forced the complainant to take legal action.
Ruling in Ashokan’s favour, the court ordered the company that imported the tiles, supplied the tiles and the contractor who paved the floor tiles to pay a compensation of Rs 16,58,641. Besides, they have also been ordered to pay Rs 1 lakh and Rs 25,000 as court expenses, within one month.