PIL in Delhi HC for E-commerce sites to display MRPs & seller details lands Centre notice

On a petition seeking direction to e-commerce websites to display maximum retail price (MRP) details of sellers, name of the manufacturer and country of origin on the products offered for sale on e-commerce websites, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday issued a notice to Centre and others. A division bench comprising Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh sought the Centre and others' reply on the plea and listed the matter for further hearing on March 12.

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Ajay Kumar Singh filed the plea through advocate Rajesh K Pandit. The petitioner has asked to pass orders directing the respondent Centre to issue directions to ensure the compliance of Consumer Protection (Ecommerce) Rules, 2020 and Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodity) Rules, 2011. The petitioner said that the Government of India in the year 2017 amended the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodity) Rules, 2011. He added that they took this step after recognising the growing relevance of e-commerce in the country and in order to protect the interest of the Consumers, and that thereafter, they are promoting Consumer Protection (e-commerce) Rules 2020.

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"The key objective of the change in law has been to recognise the role of e-commerce and make e-commerce companies accountable for displaying or disclosing all information that is relevant to the consumers prior to purchase while making a buying decision or information that may be relevant to the consumers post the purchase to address grievances," the petitioner said, as per ANI.

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He further added that as per the newspaper reports it seems like the Government of India has been actively monitoring e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, Flipkart and Snapdeal and enforcing the compliance strictly. As per the law, the digital platforms of various companies' app or websites, products are offered for sale without adequate disclosure of information to the customers. He accused companies of not following the government norms and mandatory guidelines forcing consumers to buy products with inadequate information. The matter of goods' country of origin has become a talking point also on account of India's tensions with China and the ongoing push towards Aatmanirbharta.

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(With ANI Inputs)