NT Reporter
Panaji
The High Court has stayed a bailable warrant issued against Bhavish Aggarwal, chief executive officer of Ola Electric Technologies Private Limited, holding that the district consumer commission appeared
to have exceeded its jurisdiction.
The warrant was issued by the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, South Goa, after Aggarwal failed to appear personally in a consumer complaint case.
The case arose from a complaint filed by a consumer who purchased an Ola e-scooter in August 2023 for Rs 1.47 lakh. The complainant alleged that the vehicle suffered from motor noise, a malfunctioning touchscreen and Bluetooth connectivity issues immediately after delivery.
Despite a notice issued by the district commission on January 28, 2026, directing Aggarwal to appear on February 4, neither he nor an authorised representative was present. Following this non-compliance, the commission issued a bailable warrant of Rs 1.47 lakh, matching the price of the scooter, and directed the Bengaluru police to produce him before the forum. In a petition filed by Ola Electric, the High Court observed that the district commission appeared to have “transgressed the jurisdiction and powers vested in it”, as a commission is vested with the powers of a civil court to issue warrants of detention only after a final order for compensation has been passed and is being enforced.
The High Court further noted that there is no power to issue an arrest warrant
to a party while a complaint is still in the “course of
hearing”.
“Prima facie, therefore, the state commission has transgressed the jurisdiction and powers vested in by issuing a warrant under the impugned order dated February 4,” the High Court said. The High Court stayed the execution of the warrant until further orders and issued notices to the respondents – the district commission and the complainant – returnable by March 6.
