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A consumer forum in Kerala has ordered an engineering college to refund a seat booking fee to a student who never joined the institution, saying the college had no valid reason to keep the money.
The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in Idukki found that Mangalam College of Engineering had engaged in unfair trade practice and deficiency in service by refusing to return Rs 30,000 collected from a student for reserving a BTech seat.
The commission directed the college to refund the amount with 7% annual interest from the date of the order until payment. It also ordered the institution to pay Rs 10,000 as compensation for mental agony and Rs 3,000 towards litigation costs.
What was the dispute?
The complaint was filed by advocate Rahana P A on behalf of her son, Farhan Sameer.
According to the complaint, Farhan paid Rs 30,000 on 5 July, 2023, to reserve a seat in the BTech Computer Science course for the 2023-27 academic session. The family said the college had assured them that the amount would be refunded if the student secured admission to another reputed institution.
Farhan later got admission to TKM Engineering College in Kollam and decided not to join Mangalam College. While the college returned his certificates after a written request, it refused to refund the booking amount.
According to the complaint, the college promised to refund the fee and return the certificates if the student secured admission elsewhere through the merit quota.
What did the forum say?
The commission noted that the college failed to produce any rule, agreement or document allowing it to forfeit the booking amount.
It observed that the fee had been collected solely for reserving a seat and that the student had never taken admission in the institution. The forum also noted that the college neither appeared before it nor filed a response within the prescribed time, leading to an ex parte order.
Why is the ruling important?
The order underlines that educational institutions cannot arbitrarily retain seat booking fees, especially when they have assured students that the amount would be refunded if they choose another college. The forum said refusing such a refund amounts to unfair trade practice and deficiency in service.
