Charged ₹30 extra at toll plaza, Mohali advocate steers dispute to legal win

Calling it a matter of public importance, the Mohali consumer commission observed that the issue was not about “a mere ₹30”, but about the toll operator “overcharging large numbers of commuters every day and then refusing to correct the error”

A Mohali-based advocate who took a toll plaza to court over a ₹30 overcharge — a discrepancy many commuters might overlook — has won relief after a four-year legal battle.

The advocate was overcharged while travelling by car to Ludhiana crossing Ghulal Toll Plaza on February 16, 2022. (HT)

Pulling up the Ghulal Toll Plaza near Kharar for overcharging advocate Balwinder Singh Jolly during a same-day return journey in February 2022, the Mohali District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission termed the practice an unfair trade conduct.

Calling it a matter of public importance, the bench observed that the issue was not about “a mere ₹30”, but about the toll operator “overcharging large numbers of commuters every day and then refusing to correct the error”.

The bench comprising president SK Aggarwal and members Paramjeet Kaur and Lt Col JS Bath (retd) ruled that merely ordering a refund would not be enough. It directed the toll operator to refund the excess ₹30 with 9% interest, pay ₹25,000 as compensation for harassment and litigation expenses and deposit ₹25,000 in the commission’s Legal Aid account.

The operator was further directed to upgrade its FASTag system within 45 days to ensure automatic discounts for same-day return journeys.

Jolly, a resident of Phase 10, had travelled by car to Ludhiana crossing Ghulal Toll Plaza on February 16, 2022. While the standard ₹60 toll was deducted via FASTag at 9.14 am for the onward journey, he was charged ₹60 again when he returned the same day at 1.46 pm. He contended that for a round trip within 24 hours, only an additional ₹30 fee should have been levied, as displayed on the toll rate board.

Spotting the anomaly — one that many fast-moving commuters may miss in automated FASTag deductions — Jolly approached the toll plaza the next morning seeking a refund. However, the staff allegedly refused to assist and spoke in a rude and unprofessional manner, prompting him to move the consumer commission.

Allowing the complaint, the commission held that charging ₹120 instead of ₹90 for a same-day return journey violated established guidelines and amounted to an unfair trade practice.

During the proceedings, the toll plaza authorities failed to file a written reply, stopped appearing before the commission and did not deposit the ₹500 cost imposed for delay. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) also remained absent despite service of summons, leading the commission to proceed ex parte against them.

Noting that the conduct of the toll operator “goes uncontested”, the commission awarded the compensation to the complainant, while observing that such overcharging could be affecting a large number of commuters, particularly as FASTag users have no manual option to correct or contest a wrong deduction at the spot.