I have an eye-opening experience to share with you about Bharat Matrimony, the so called big brand name in Matrimonial websites, which boasts of tags like the ‘most trusted’ and ‘number 1 matrimonial website’ . I have remained silent all this while because the matter was in Court but now is the time to share. My two years of legal battle with Consim Info Pvt. Ltd. or Bharat Matrimony or Matrimony.com Pvt. Limited recently ended in the Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum NOIDA and here are the facts:

1. I opted for a 3 month package of Privilege Matrimony in Feb.2011 by paying Rs. 15 thousand. After experiencing the pathetic service, within the first month itself, I decided that I can’t stand the quality of the same. Sensing their incompetence with services, I requested immediate discontinuation of services and refund. As expected Bharat Matrimony (BM) refused a refund. After several reminders to the Company in this regard I served them a NOTICE in June 2011, which they did not bother to respond soon enough.

2. Thereafter, I moved Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum at NOIDA in August 2011 (CC # 261 of 2011). The Forum decided the matter eight months later on 21/03/2012 in my favour and directed a total compensation of Rs. 35 thousand to be paid by Bharat Matrimony. For the next three months the Company simply ignored a number of requests made by me to comply with the Orders of the Forum.

3. Failing to have the Company comply with the Orders, I was forced to move an Execution Petition (Ex. No. 108/2012) in May 2012 with the Consumer Forum u/s 25 and 27 of the Consumer Protection Act. The Company still did not bother to respond and remained evasive.

4. On 29 January 2013, after waiting for six months the Forum issued a show-cause to the CEO of the Company Mr. Murugavel Janakiraman as to why he should not be arrested, fined and sentenced to undergo imprisonment ,as per provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, for failing to comply with the Order dated 21/03/2012 of the Forum. I thereafter, moved three applications with the Forum, with copies of the same to Bharat Matrimony requesting compliance of the Orders but all this again fell on deaf ears. All correspondence was sent by Speed Post at Company’s Corporate Office at MRC Nagar, Mandaveli, Chennai and addressed to Mr. Murugavel Janakiraman, CEO.

5. Furious with the defiant attitude of the Company the Forum sent another show-cause to the CEO, Mr. Murugavel Janakiraman on 23 May 2013 by way of granting last opportunity and threatening arrest, fine and imprisonment. The same gave time till 09 July 2013 to the Company.

6. In June 2013 the Company made feeble attempts and proposed a disgraceful out of court settlement, which I rejected outright and instead closed their gates for an Appeal by filing a caveat in the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Lucknow.

7. Cornered fully by the law, the Company had no escape routes left and for the first time in two years an advocate appeared on 09/07/2013, on Company’s behalf with the compensation cheque of Rs 35 thousand. The Forum at this juncture allowed additional compensation to me, towards the cost of filing Execution Petition and directed them to pay another Rs 5 thousand within a month over and above Rs.35 thousand.

8. It is not the money that mattered to me in this battle else I would have appealed against the Order thereby seeking higher compensation, I had principally decided that I will not let this Company walk away with my hard earned money as also that I was determined that they must be legally brought to book , exposed and must earn disrepute for the kind of rampant unfairness and cheating they indulge into and for the harassment they mete out to scores customers, after enticing them with the promise of superlative services. During these two years I had to file numerous applications in the Consumer Forum, besides investing a lot of time in contesting the matter and I wish to tell you that am not an Advocate.

9. My request is that all those who have haplessly suffered in hands of this Company must take a note of this and should not take it lying low and must hit back with full force and teach such people a lesson. You may probably realise that this Company commercially exploits a very sensitive and fragile human sentiment and uses it to the best of its commercial advantage. It is because of our apathy and negligent attitude that they thrive and prosper.

10. It is true that happening of marriage is dependent on a number of factors but Companies like this make this as an excuse to promise a world of exclusive services, charge for it in an exhorbitant manner and then dump non sense of services on the unsuspecting customer and worse still they are able to get away with that. The truth is that this Company Bharat Matrimony or Matrimony.com Pvt. Ltd. and this entire conglomerate neither has a regard for business ethics, nor for the customer and neither for the law of this country. Their greed and vice know no limits. I even suspect they are evading taxes as I have observed that they are changing the name of their Company- First it was Bharat Matrimony in 2010- then it changed to Consim Info Pvt. Ltd. in 2011 and now it has become matrimony.com pvt. ltd. I have drawn a lot of inputs for my legal battle from the experience of many customers shared on such platforms, hence a caveat emptor to all out there.

11. In case any of you want to check out the facts for yourself you are free to get details pertaining to this case from me, I promise all help.

12. This entire post was forwarded to the Company , for attention/information of all concerned, before uploading here and the same has been acknowledged by their system vide their Ticket Number 10070998 dated 23 July 2013.