The Thane additional district consumer disputes redressal commission has directed a resort in Goa and a tourism company to refund the amount paid by a man for a friends' reunion, which had to be cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The man, a resident of Navi Mumbai, had said in his complaint that he and his friends had decided to have a reunion in Goa in March 2020. The bookings, worth Rs 6.84 lakh, were made for March 13-15. Of this, the complainant had paid Rs 4 lakh as advance to book the resort. However, soon after, Covid-19 was declared as a pandemic and restrictions were placed on travel. The man told the commission that on March 7, 2020, the resort was informed via an email that he and his friends, who were to come from outside India, could not travel due to the pandemic. The complainant sought for the dates to be rescheduled, to which the resort agreed. As the pandemic situation kept worsening, the man was compelled to cancel the reunion and requested for a refund. When the resort refused, he approached the consumer commission. The commission passed an ex-parte order as representatives of the tourism company and resort did not appear before it. "It is crystal clear that from the terms and conditions of the event coupled with emails relied on by the complainant that due to the supervening act of God viz pandemic Covid-19, the event was cancelled. Therefore, the complainant is justified to claim a refund of the amount," the commission said last month. It directed that the man be paid Rs 4 lakh, along with an interest of 9 per cent, from the date of the cancellation of the booking. It also said that other expenses, including Rs 2 lakh towards litigation and mental torture, sought by the complainant are "exorbitant and unreasonable". The commission ordered that Rs 20,000 be paid to the man towards the professional fees of his lawyer.
