Dear Sir / Madam
With immense displeasure and dissatisfaction, I want to bring to your notice that my parents have recently been victimised to an internal Airtel fraud / scandal. I am a Non Resident Indian and live overseas. I am highly disturbed by this incident and my parents especially my Mother has been suffering from some stress after this incident. Please read the details below:
My parents used to live in Tagore Garden area in New Delhi and had to move to Paschim Vihar area at the start of this month. They had been on Airtel 699 plan for a while and were quite happy with it. A series of events happened when they called Airtel to move their phone connection to the new address:
1. Fraud 1 – To start with, Airtel refused to transfer phone from Tagore Garden to Paschim Vihar and the reason we were given that was there is no box available in Paschim Vihar where Airtel can transfer the connection. We then agreed for a new connection at the new address and we were told that the new line will be connected within 5 working days.
Later we came to know from one of the Airtel employees that this is just a regular fraud conducted in order to generate more leads for new connection. Name of that Airtel employee will not be disclosed by us.
2. Fraud 2 – After that initial call, my parents received quite a few calls from Airtel asking them to cooperate in order to transfer the number to someone else as they didn’t want to disconnect the line. When Airtel couldn’t find anyone to transfer the number, they simply disconnected the old number quoting that my parents have asked them to disconnect the number.
The truth is that they never wanted to get that number disconnected and simply transfer it to the new address. And my parents never asked Airtel to transfer it to any one else. Airtel just didn’t want to transfer it to the new place or disconnect it.
3. Fraud 3 – Two Airtel employees visited our new house on 14th September at around 3:00 PM. One of the employee’s name was Navneet and he informed my parents that they work under the area head Shri Ram. They told my parents that the line will be connected within 2-3 days.
They also told my parents that the 699 plan will not be provided to us on my father’s name as at the previous place we already had that plan on my father’s name. My mother then asked him if it is possible to have it on her name and after consulting with Shri Ram over the phone, they okayed it. We then filled the form for 699 plan on my mother’s name.
They also took a cheque of Rs 500 cheque (Cheque Number: 032874) for the new connection and didn’t give us any receipt (even though my parents asked for it).
4. Fraud 4 – When my parents didn’t receive any further communication for few days after that, then they first called Navneet and he told them that government has sealed the telephone lines and they open only once in a month. So he wasn’t sure when the line will be connected. My parents then spoke to Shri Ram and he told them that their office is getting transferred on first floor and he wasn’t sure when engineers will fix the line.
My parents then got a call from Airtel on 27th September that they are ready for connecting the new line. And when the next day Airtel employees were doing their work to put on the new line, my parents came to know that the place where Airtel’s tower was located, the area was inaccessible for quite some time as the owner has been away and he recently came back.
5. Fraud 5 – Bipin, an Airtel employee came later in the evening to fix the Broadband. When we verified our plan with him, he told us that he has received the 999 plan from Airtel. He further told us that the plan in the form was changed. He then called someone from his phone who then confirmed the same. My parents then asked him to convert it to 699 plan, but the person on the other side of the phone refused and disconnected the line as we didn’t want the 999 plan. Bipin then ensured us that he will try his best to get it reconnected on 699 plan.
We then called Shri Ram while Bipin was there. He wasn’t on duty at that time and seemed quite drunk and confessed over the phone that he himself changed the plan on the form. Bipin heard the entire conversation.
Today (29th September) Abhay (an Airtel employee) called my parents and told them that we will not get 699 plan we will have to continue on 999 plan. When my parents told him that we will make an official complaint, then he told them that he is not afraid of complaint and we can do whatever we want.
Airtel Reference Numbers are: 208497170, 208446498, 38468128, 38187972
I would like to hear from you what actions will be taken by Airtel in this regards.
Regards
Arpan Jain
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