‘Sorry, no credit cards for policemen’

Four inspectors with Delhi Police have moved the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum against a bank for refusing credit cards to them. They were told they belonged to a negative profession, reports Naziya Alvi.

Four inspectors with Delhi Police’s Special Cell have moved the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum against a bank for refusing credit cards to them. Earlier, a lawyer, too, was refused a credit card and filed a similar petition. The consumer forum has issued notices to the bank.

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The complainant policemen — Govind Sharma, Subhash Vats, Onkar Kapil and Virender Chauhan – said that they felt humiliated, as they knew several of their junior colleagues possessed credit cards.

They have prayed to the court to direct the bank to pay a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each for the mental agony the bank caused them.

The complaint said in December last year, an official of the bank approached them to accept a credit card. The four agreed and completed the formalities. But they did not hear from the bank again.

“The opposite party without any rhyme, reason or excuse declined to grant a credit card to us. It is pertinent to mention that the same bank has granted cards to a few persons working with the Delhi Police and are of much lower ranks,” said the petition. Finally on January 1, 2008, the bank in a e-mail told them that the credit cards cannot be issued to them as they belong to a negative profession.

Earlier in February this year, the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission came down heavily on banks for adopting a similar policy.