Advocate Nikhil Dhawan

Questions Answered by Advocate Nikhil Dhawan

Q: Notice period increased arbitrarily without prior intimation

I have joined my company one year back with 1 month notice period. recently HR sent a mail saying that the notice period has been revised to 3 months with effective from today. The next day they asked me to sign on the revised clause, i refused and i told it is not acceptable for me. Then HR says that it is already implemented and applicable across the organization whether the employee like it or not. The next day i keep my resignation. But my HR was not ready to relieve me in 1 month. he says now you are under 3 months notice period, so you should serve 3 months notice period. Please advice me whether my stand is correct or not and how can i proceed legally. Also during this notice period revision I have got one offer from other company. Since my notice period is for 1 month, I have got my offer letter to join within one month.

Advocate Nikhil Dhawan answered
The policy which they made you sign at the time of appointment will be the policy you need to follow. If there is any change in the policy, they will have to ask you before implementing. They cant just impose their terms and conditions on you. You can send them a legal notice that you are been harassed and you can go to court for this harassment.

Q: Refund from 10 year holiday membership plan

I was forced to take a Holiday membership and sign the agreements of 10 years plan. I visited a company on 24th Feb where they almost convinced me to take the membership. The membership offered 1) 7 days/6 nights every year to their 4/5 Star Hotels. 2) 3 Bonus weeks 3) 12K Flight offer 4) 3 Days/2 Nights at Jim Corbett The membership fee is 1,55,000 and 7,000 Annual Maintenance Charges. I actually paid 1,45,000 then they showed me the agreements. It was written that the membership fee is non-refundable. I asked them to refund the amount but they told me that I have to sign this documents and have to take the first holiday then only I can have the refund. Then they later said that I can email to the support for the refund and cc- them in the email. They will help me in getting the refunds. But I doubt about this. They also said that I will get a confirmation call from their main branch about the membership and I should say "all yes". How can I get the refund?

Advocate Nikhil Dhawan answered
As a general perception companies like club mahindra and country club only make false promises of refund but never fulfill them. The best relief is to move to consumer forum seeking quick relief and most probably the refund is initiated in 2-3 months.

Q: Legal action against company not providing the salary since 4 months

I was working in a private limited company and they have not paid my salary for last 4 months. When ever i ask them they tell that they are in financial problem and do not have money. They keep telling me that we will send some money in 1 week, 5days, 10 days, etc. Every time they are making excuses. I am really fed up of their false promises. Now they do not respond to my calls, i have to keep calling then someone will answer. Please help me with your valuable suggestions.

Advocate Nikhil Dhawan answered
Send a legal notice- To effectively reconcile the dispute, you must first send a legal notice. The legal notice should categorically state all the steps you intend to take against the employer. The advantage of sending a legal notice is that your employer might clear all your dues before instituting a lawsuit against you. For sending a legal notice to take the assistance of a credible lawyer asking the employer to pay the salary due to him.Go for Arbitration- If the employer does not take an immediate action after the legal notice is served on him, the aggrieved employee can resort to the other remedies. The employee should carefully read the employment contract before signing it. The employment contract usually contains a clause that provides for referring the matter to arbitration in respect of any dispute arising out of the contract. If such an arbitration clause is present, the employee can refer the matter to arbitration and proceed as provided in the contract or as per the provisions of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. Arbitration is a method of resolving a dispute outside court. Arbitration is a lot faster than litigating in courts. An arbitration clause helps you sort a dispute without actually going to courts. Also, both the parties can mutually choose the arbitrator, i.e., the person who will decide the dispute. Opting for arbitration saves both the litigant’s and court’s time.Approach the labour commissioner- If there is no ‘Arbitration clause’ or where the matter is not resolved through such settlement, the employee can make an application to the Labour Commission of your District, who shall try to resolve the matter between you both.File a complaint before Labour Court- If the dispute does not get settled before the Labour Commission then the employee can file an application before the Labour Court in accordance with the provisions of Section 33(C) of the Industrial Dispute Act, 1947. Provided that such an application shall be made within one year from the date on which the salary has become due. If the court is satisfied that a genuine complaint has been made then it shall order a certificate and direct the collector to recover from the employer such amount as has been due. The labour court shall dispose of the case within a period of three months.File a civil suit- If an employee is a manager of the company or at any other post above the executive level, then he may also file a suit in the civil court in accordance with the provisions of Civil Procedure Code, 1908. But the employee should not resort to this remedy at first, he shall take into consideration the other methods of dispute resolution. A civil court litigation may take longer to resolve the dispute.

Q: Procedure to take action against fraudulent credit card transaction

Seeking guidance and help in dealing with fraudulent credit card transaction happened in nov-2017. 4 different transactions were made almost at the same time from platforms such as airtel payment and paytm using my credit card which was in my custody and aftr making multiple request i did not get any relief from bank side.

Advocate Nikhil Dhawan answered
1. Collect Bank statement of the last six months from the concerned bank.2. Make a copy of SMSs received related to the alleged transactions.4. Take copy of your ID proof and address proof as shown in the bank records.5. Lodge a complaint in your nearest Police Station explaining complete incidence along with the above documents.

Q: Remedy as vehicle purchased already sold to another person before

2 years after purchase of activa, i found on official records through activa service centre that the activa was sold to someone prior too. though the registration is in my name, but it clearly shows that the vehicle was sold 6 months earlier to someone else. can i hook in the head office because primarily they told me that the activa is new when i had doubts?

Advocate Nikhil Dhawan answered
Yes, the simplest way in your present case is to knock the doors of Consumer Forum with the supervision of an advocate, you can claim a good amount of compensation because if you file a civil/criminal suit it will take a lot of time as it is a long run process