Open Access Research Article
ROLE OF JUDICIARY IN CONSUMER PROTECTION AND AWARENESS
Published Paper
Article Details
AUTHORED
BY - SHIVAM KUMAR GUPTA*
Designation-
Ph.D. Scholar
Institute-
School of Law, Bennett University.
Co-
Author - Dr. Preeti Singh*
Designation-
Assistant Professor
Institute-
School of Law, Bennett University.
Abstract
The drastic changes in Information
and Communication Technology (ICT) have diversified the consumer sector. The
consumer sector is increasing due to the demand from the increasing population.
The development of ICT has made buying and selling easy through digital modes.
This all added up to the increasing consumer sector and hence there is a
pertinent need for protecting consumers from malpractices by promoting consumer
awareness and education. The consumer, being a common person with ordinary
prudence, cannot be considered as an expert in every field. In this regard, the
government makes the laws for the safeguard and protection of consumers.
Despite having the laws, still there are malpractices that harm consumers in
direct or indirect ways. However, some laws advocate for the protection of
consumers and the promotion of consumer awareness and education along with.
Henceforth, this paper explains the
important role of the judiciary in consumer protection and safeguards. Also,
the paper attempts to highlight the important role of government in spreading
judicial decisions among the consumer to bring awareness in society. The
decisions of the judiciary which favours consumers must be spread in easy
language among the citizens to bring awareness.
Keywords- Consumer, Consumer
Protection, Judiciary, Rights and Awareness
**Faculty and Ph.D. Supervisor @ Bennett University (The Times Group),
Greater Noida
Introduction
The fast-changing world is easily
witnessed by everyone and every other sector is influenced and marked the
significant change due to the development of Information and Communication
Technology (ICT). The ICT has even had a significant effect on the consumer
sector. The consumer who is the base of the economy needs careful protection.
The government plays a significant role in the protection of consumers. The
consumers needed special laws for their protection.[1]
The laws like The Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act of 1969[2] ,
The Sale of Goods Act of 1930[3], The Consumer Protection Act of 2019[4],
etc. are available for the protection and safeguarding of consumers. The laws
are useful when there is a strong judicial wing to protect consumers whenever
anyone approaches it, in case of violation of their rights. Even judicial
education[5]
can also be initiated in the area of consumer protection. In this regard, the
article focuses on the judicial role in the protection of consumers.
Consumers as the base of the economy
The
consumer is the essential root of every economy. The economy revolves around
the consumer. The consumer is the one who affects the supply and demand of the
economy.[6] He impacts the economy through his demands
and purchasing elements. The buying and selling of the product have the base of
the consumer. So, it is important to always keep the consumer at zenith. The
fitness of the economic structure of any country or globally depends on the
ultimate buyer. The consumer must be treated with respect and dignity in every
economy. This respect can be ensured when the rights are protected of the
consumers. In case of violation of the rights of the consumers, the judiciary
and law enforcement agencies must come forward for the protection and safeguard
of the consumers. The Department of Consumer Affairs has
been established in this regard only.[7]
The government must take appropriate steps to spread awareness among consumers.
This awareness must be regarding the malpractices which are taking place in the
marketplace. In this modern era, consumer education has become an important
subject for the consumer to be implemented and spread by the government.
In
this digital era, social media is flooded with misleading ads. In this,
consumers must be seriously aware before making any choice for purchase. The
consumer has various rights and privileges that will help them to raise their
voice against the injustices. The courts are present to discuss the matter which
is not the part of legislature even. The court uses the principles of equity,
justice, and good conscience for the welfare of the consumers. Special courts
have been made for the consumers. In this way, the judiciary plays a
significant role in the protection of consumers. The government must ensure
that the decisions of the judiciary or consumer forums must be conveyed to the
public through consumer education and awareness programmes.
Consumer safeguards vis-à-vis role of judiciary
The government is organizing various programmes for the awareness
of consumers. One such famous programmes is Jaago Grahak Jaago[8].
The laws are also available for the protection and safeguarding of consumers.
Apart from laws and programmes, the judicial role is also appreciable. The
judiciary and its judgments have played an important role in the protection of
consumers and in spreading consumer awareness against ill practices. The
consumer forums and commissions, etc. have contributed to the safeguarding of
the consumers. Judicial Education can be specially promoted in the context of
dynamic changes of the consumer sector. Many cases are held, and the decisions
of those cases are for the welfare of the consumers. These legal cases and
their decision must be conveyed to the public in easy language, to promote
consumer awareness and consumer education. To explain the important role of the
judicial part in safeguarding consumers, two important cases in this regard are
explained below.
1-
The theme of the case was the
charging of additional prices for the carry bags by the seller. In the case of Dinesh
Parshad Raturi v. Bata India Limited[9],
Raturi is the one who purchased a pair of shoes from the BATA Store. During the
billing, he was charged Rs. 3 extra for the paper bag as a carry bag for the
shoes. It was told by Raturi that he had no intention of purchasing that paper
bag. The bag had the name of the shop BATA which was an advertisement. He
argued that the BATA was using him for the advertisement. The BATA in his
defense said that for the safety of environmental concerns, the customer was provided
the paper bag only for Rs. Three (Rs. 3).
It came out that whether the charging for the paper bag was unfair or
not. The Consumer forum held that BATA was found to be using unfair practice in
compelling the customer to buy the paper bag and if the concern was for the
environment, then BATA should have given the paper bag free of charge. This
kind of situation is very common, but it is appreciated that someone has raised
this topic. As the judgment came in the favour of the customer, then it is also
needed that this judgment must be communicated to everyone.
2-
Another common issue is the theme
that the water bottles were refused to be taken inside the movie halls. In the
case of Rupasi Multiplex v. Mautusi Chaudhuri,[10]
the complainant had purchased the movie ticket from the hall paying the amount
of Three hundred thirty (Rs. 330/). So,
after purchasing the ticket, they had the water bottle which were not allowed
to take while they were entering the film. When they were inside for the film,
they didn’t find the free drinking water. Instead, they were compelled to
purchase the higher-priced water inside the movie hall. The main issue now is
that whether the cinema hall had used the unfair trade practice by restricting
‘not carrying the water bottle inside the hall’ under the Consumer Protection
Act, of 1986. The National Consumer for Dispute Redressal Commission (NCDRC)
has observed that the basic necessity of everyone for survival is water. It
becomes the primary responsibility of the cinema halls to provide drinking
water if they do not allow water bottles inside the cinema halls. The court
also observed that everyone cannot afford such a huge amount which is available
at much lower prices outside the cinema halls. The NCDRC held that the cinema
halls must provide free and clean drinking water. This issue of water bottles
inside the hall was essential. In this case, the judgment came in favor of the
customers.
Such cases are examples that how in daily life, unfair practices
are taking place. The consumer must raise their voice against these injustices.
The judiciary is present to help us if any one of the rights of the consumers
is violated. The consumers must seek judicial help without any hesitation or
delay. The consumer forum is specially constituted for the welfare of the
consumers. When the judgments come in favor of any of the consumers, it helps
the whole consumer fraternity. These cases have given landmark judgments, such
cases and their decisions must be conveyed to the public through these
awareness programmes or consumer education. If these judgments are not
communicated to the public, then the whole purpose of these judgments goes in
vain.
Conclusion
The
judicial is plays an important role in safeguarding and protecting consumers.
The role of the judiciary can be more useful if the judgments are spread among
the consumers. Special programmes must be conducted to spread judicial
decisions regarding consumer protection. Educational Institutions through the
academic curriculum and co-curriculum consumer awareness programme have added
their significant role in consumer awareness initiatives. Every awareness
programme needs and requires a budget to work to achieve its full potential. In
this, the funding agencies must come forward for budget-related issues. The
foreign players should be invited in a more investment-friendly manner. These
international players can contribute to making awareness programmes more viable
and can reach a larger audience. Business aims to earn huge profits resulting
in the neglect of the consumer's health and safety. The available laws for
consumer protection had been made but when any wrong happens to the consumers,
they directly approach the judicial bodies. Hence judiciary plays an important
role in safeguarding consumers by using the bases of laws and principles of
equity, justice, and good conscience.
The
programmes like Jaago Grahak Jaago have added to consumer awareness in a
significant manner. These programmes not only awakened the consumers but also
created pressure on the business entity to ensure the quality and purity of the
product or services. The judiciary as the guardian of the constitution has also
helped to protect the fundamental rights of the citizens. The judicial bodies
have given landmark decisions in the journey of consumer protection. These
decisions must be communicated to consumers through the different awareness
programmes.
Suggestions
1-
The programmes run by the government have a
wider reach. The government sector can reach from city to village due to the
presence of different government sectors. This wider reach is easily manageable
through government resources. These government resources and wider reach must
be used to spread awareness among consumers. The potential of the government
sector must be fully utilized for the welfare of the consumers. The judicial
decisions must be included in these awareness programmes.
2-
India is a country with diverse languages and
cultures. The programmes which are made for people must be made keeping in mind
the diverse cultures and languages. The programmes must be flexible in nature.
The target audience must be vast. The same programmes must cover various groups
or regions and the language barriers must be considered in the earlier stage of
the formation of the programme.
3-
It is seen that many programmes are made only
for students or youth. However, it is important to understand that the
consumers are from all age groups. The coverage of programmes can be for a
specific audience, but different programmes must be made for every type of
audience.
4-
Education plays an important role in seeding
any idea or information. The students from a tender age must only be aware of
the bad practices of sellers. Consumer education must be part of the curriculum
of the students from 5th grade. The consumer education should not be
limited to a particular language. Financial literacy must be communicated to
the children to bring a sense of responsibility regarding financial decisions.
This knowledge must be including the latest consumer judgments to spread the
landmark judgements of the consumer forums or courts.
[1] Geraint Howells & Rhoda James,
'Litigation in the Consumer Interest' (2002) 9 ILSA J Int'l & Comp L 1
[2] The Monopolies and Restrictive
Trade Practices Act of 1969, No. 54, Acts of Parliament, 1969 (India).
[3] The Sale of Goods Act of 1930, No.
3, Acts of Parliament, 1930 (India).
[4] The Consumer Protection Act of
2019, No. 35, Acts of Parliament, 2019 (India).
[6] Resmi Annie Thomas, ‘A Survey of Consumer Awareness On Select
Component’ (2013) 3 (issue-II), Indian Journal Of Management Science
[7] About DCA, The Department of
Consumer Affairs
accessed 12 April 2024.
[8] About Jago Grahak Jago,
accessed 15 April 2024
[9] Dinesh Parshad Raturi vs. Bata
India Limited (09.04.2019 - SCDRC Chandigarh): MANU/SF/0005/2019. See also Ashok R. Patil, ‘Landmark Judgements on Consumer
Law and Practice 2008-2020’, National Law School of India University, Scholarship
Repository,
accessed 12 April, 2024
[10] Rupasi Multiplex v. Mautusi
Chaudhuri, 2015 SCC OnLine NCDRC 2331. See also Ashok R. Patil, ‘Landmark
Judgements on Consumer Law and Practice 2008-2020’, National Law School of
India University, Scholarship Repository,
accessed 12 April, 2024
Article Information
ROLE OF JUDICIARY IN CONSUMER PROTECTION AND AWARENESS
Authors: SHIVAM KUMAR GUPTA, DR. PREETI SINGH
- Journal IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
- Published 2024/04/18
- Issue 7
About Journal
International Journal for Legal Research and Analysis
- Abbreviation IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
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