Parliament Question: Complaints against e-Commerce Platforms

Government of India Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Department of Consumer Affairs LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5415 TO BE ANSWERED ON 25.03.2026 COMPLAINTS AGAINST E-COMMERCE PLATFORMS 5415. SHRI SHYAMKUMAR DAULAT BARVE: Will the Minister of CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION be pleased to state: (a) whether it is a fact that in recent years there has been a significant increase in complaints regarding misleading advertisements, sale of counterfeit or substandard products and consumer deception in the name of heavy discounts on e-commerce platforms; (b) if so, the details of total consumer complaints received during the last five years, their redressal, and actions taken against the defaulting companies, year, State/Union Territory and platform-wise; (c) whether in many cases consumers are not provided clear information regarding the actual price, quality and warranty of products; (d) if so, whether the Government has reviewed these issues and considered enforcing strict guidelines or punitive measures for e-commerce companies and sellers; and (e) if so, the details of the concrete steps taken by the Government to protect the interests of consumers? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION (SHRI B.L.VERMA) (a) to (e) : The year-wise, State/UT-wise and mode-wise details of complaints received and disposed on the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) regarding misleading advertisements and sale of counterfeit or substandard products during the last five years are given at Annexure. The National Consumer Helpline (NCH) administered by the Department of Consumer Affairs has emerged as a single point of access to consumers across the country for their grievance redressal at a prelitigation stage for violation of rights of consumers, misleading advertisements and unfair trade practices. Consumers can register their grievances from all over the country in 17 languages including Hindi, English, Kashmiri, Punjabi, Nepali, Gujarati, Marathi, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Maithili, Santhali, Bengali, Odia, Assamese and Manipuri through a toll-free number 1915. These grievances can be registered on Integrated Grievance Redressal Mechanism (INGRAM), an omni-channel IT enabled central portal, through various channels- WhatsApp (8800001915), SMS (8800001915), email (nch-ca@gov.in), the NCH app, the web portal (consumerhelpline.gov.in) and the Umang app, as per their convenience. 1,398 companies, who have voluntarily partnered with NCH as part of the ‘Convergence’ programme directly respond to these grievances according to their redressal process and revert by providing a feedback to the complainant on the portal.The National Consumer Helpline (NCH) has successfully facilitated refund of ₹52 crore to consumers between 25th April 2025 and 31st January 2026. This significant redressal at a pre-litigation stage was achieved across 31 sectors (including 36.80 Crores with regard to the grievances pertaining to ecommerce sector), effectively addressing 79,521 consumer grievances related to refund claims. The Department has notified the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 on 23 July 2020 under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 to safeguard consumers from unfair trade practices in the ecommerce sector. These Rules specify the duties of e-commerce entities, liabilities of marketplace entities, responsibilities of sellers on marketplaces and duties of inventory-based e-commerce entities. Under these Rules, e-commerce entities are required to appoint a Grievance Officer and prominently display the name, designation and contact details of the officer on their platform. The grievance officer must acknowledge consumer complaints within 48 hours and redress them within one month from the date of receipt of the complaint. E-commerce entities are also required to endeavour to become partners in the convergence process of the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) and are prohibited from discriminating between consumers of the same class or manipulating prices to gain unreasonable profits. Marketplace e-commerce entities are required to obtain undertakings from sellers ensuring that product descriptions, images and other content correspond accurately with the appearance, nature, quality and features of the goods or services. They must prominently publish details of sellers including business name, geographic address, customer care contact details, ratings and feedback along with complete information regarding return, refund, exchange, warranty, delivery, payment modes and grievance redressal mechanisms. Sellers are also required to ensure that advertisements are consistent with the actual characteristics and usage conditions of goods or services and are prohibited from posting misleading reviews or misrepresenting product features. Under the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), an executive agency, came into existence on 24.07.2020. It is designed to intervene, to prevent consumer detriment arising from violation of rights of consumers, misleading advertisements, unfair trade practices etc. and to initiate class action(s), including the enforcement of recalls, refunds and return of products. As on 09.03.2026, CCPA has issued 477 notices of class action, imposed penalties amounting to ₹3,00,40,500 and closed 177 cases with receipt of penalties of ₹1,56,10,500. CCPA has taken action against several entities for violation of consumer rights and unfair trade practices in the e-commerce sector. Such actions include withdrawal of misleading advertisements relating to certain low-quality products marketed through online platforms, recall of products being sold in violation of mandatory quality standards and Quality Control Orders. Penal action has also been taken against entities for sale of products bearing spurious certification marks and misleading claims. CCPA has taken action against the sale of domestic pressure cookers that do not meet compulsory BIS standards on e-commerce platforms. CCPA, for safeguarding consumer interests and their safety, issued directions to e-commerce platforms and their sellers to recall total 5507 non-ISI mark domestic pressure cookers sold by them. CCPA also directed sellers of e-commerce platforms to recall 818 toys and also imposed penalties for the toys which were being sold on e-commerce platforms in violation to mandatory standards and QCO notified for toys. CCPA has issued Safety Notices under Section 18(2)(j) of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 cautioning consumers against purchase of goods not conforming to mandatory safety standards which includes helmets, pressure cookers, cooking gas cylinders and certain household electrical appliances.CCPA has issued an advisory dated 30th September, 2021 in terms of the Consumer Protection (E- Commerce) Rules, 2020 regarding display of information provided by sellers on marketplace ecommerce platforms. The advisory, inter-alia, provides for ensuring that marketplace e-commerce entities display in a clear and accessible manner all relevant information furnished by sellers on their platforms, including details of the seller and grievance officer, so as to safeguard consumer interests and facilitate effective grievance redressal for consumers purchasing goods or services through e-commerce. CCPA issued an advisory dated 14.07.2022 to e-commerce platforms regarding the online sale of certain Ayurvedic, Siddha and Unani medicines that contain ingredients listed in Schedule E(1) of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945 which may include potentially hazardous substances and therefore must be consumed only under medical supervision. Accordingly, e-commerce platforms have been advised to ensure that such drugs are sold only after a valid prescription from a registered Ayurveda, Siddha or Unani practitioner is uploaded by the consumer on the platform to prevent unsafe self-medication and protect consumers from potential health risks associated with unsupervised use of such medicines. CCPA has notified the Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022 on 9th June, 2022. These guidelines inter-alia provide for conditions for an advertisement to be non-misleading and valid; duties of manufacturer, service provider, advertiser and advertising agency including on e-commerce platforms. Central Consumer Protection Authority, in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 18 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, issued “Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023” on 30th November, 2023, listing 13 specified dark patterns identified in e-Commerce sector. These dark patterns include false urgency, Basket Sneaking, Confirm shaming, forced action, Subscription trap, Interface Interference, Bait and switch, Drip Pricing, Disguised Advertisements, Nagging, Trick Wording, Saas Billing and Rogue Malwares. An “Advisory for Self-Audit by E-Commerce Platforms for detecting the Dark Patterns on their platforms to create a fair, ethical and consumer centric digital ecosystem” was also issued by the CCPA on 5th June, 2025. 29 leading e-commerce platforms have voluntarily submitted their self-declaration letters confirming compliance with the Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023. CCPA has also notified Guidelines for the Prevention and Regulation of Illegal Listing and Sale of Radio Equipment including Walkie Talkies on E-Commerce Platforms, 2025. These guidelines have been notified to curb the unauthorized sale of wireless devices operating beyond the 446.0-446.2 MHz frequency band that may pose risks to consumer safety, mislead consumers regarding their legal position and interfere with critical communication networks, including those used by law enforcement and emergency services. Further, the CCPA action follows the identification of over 16,970 non-compliant walkie-talkie listings across platforms and also imposed penalties of ₹10 lakh each on Meesho, Flipkart, Amazon and Meta Platforms Inc, and ₹1 lakh each on Chimiya, JioMart, Talk Pro and MaskMan Toys. CCPA has taken action against the sale of counterfeit and substandard goods on a major ecommerce platform for promotion and sale of counterfeit and spurious goods including medicines, cosmetics, beauty products and clothing items, misleading display of MRPs and discounts on branded products, use of misleading labels alongside spurious listings and facilitation of sale of Schedule-H drugs without prescription. The platform was directed to strengthen its due-diligence and monitoring mechanisms. As a result of these regulatory interventions, the platform instituted enhanced internal detection and filtering systems and reported large-scale removal of counterfeit listings from its platform. The company informed that between 04 August 2022 and 05 June 2025, a total of 1,21,31,880 product listings identified as counterfeit were delisted out of 40,19,27,610 listings uploaded, including 69,63,556 counterfeit listings removed during April 2023-September 2024 and 12,35,469 listings removed during September 2024-May 2025.From 2020 till date, 997 notices have been issued by Legal Metrology, for violations of the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011, regarding non declaration of mandatory information such as country of origin, MRP, net quantity etc. resulting in compounding of Rs. 1.03 Crore under Section 48 of the Legal Metrology Act, 2009. These notices also include sale of unverified weighing scales/instruments on e-commerce platforms. Aligned with global best practices, “Safety Pledge” has been finalized, in consultation with all the stakeholders, which is a voluntary public commitment of e-Commerce platforms to ensure the safety of goods sold online. This initiative strengthens consumer protection in the e-commerce. Various e-Commerce companies viz. Tata Digital, Tata 1mg, BigBasket, Tata Cliq, Chroma, Swiggy, Ola, Zomato, Ajio, JioMart, Netmeds, Meesho etc. have signed the Safety Pledge for ensuring consumer safety. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has notified framework on ‘Online Consumer Reviews- Principles and Requirements for their Collection, Moderation and Publication’ on 23.11.2022 for safeguarding and protecting consumer interest from fake and deceptive reviews in e-commerce. The standards are voluntary and are applicable to every online platform which publishes consumer reviews. The guiding principles of the standard are integrity, accuracy, privacy, security, transparency, accessibility and responsiveness. To protect the rights of consumers, the Central Government has mandated BIS certification for 635 products. Such products cannot be manufactured, sold, imported, stored or exhibited for sale without a valid BIS certification. Certification is granted after testing the conformity of products with the relevant Indian Standards. During the past two years, BIS has tested 209 samples purchased from e-commerce platforms to verify their conformity with the relevant Indian Standards. Out of these, 144 samples were found conforming to the Indian Standards. During the past two years, BIS has conducted 79 search and seizure operations at the premises of e- commerce warehouses, sellers operating on e-commerce platforms viz. Amazon, BigBasket, Blinkit, Flipkart, Meesho and Myntra. These operations have been carried out across various States including Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. *****ANNEXURE ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) to (e) OF LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5415 FOR ANSWER ON 25.03.2026 REGARDING “COMPLAINTS AGAINST E- COMMERCE PLATFORMS”. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Year-wise, State/UT-wise and Mode-wise details of complaints received on the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) regarding misleading advertisements and sale of counterfeit or substandard products during the last five years. S. 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 State/UT Dispose Dispose Dispose Received Received Disposed Received Disposed Received Received No. d d d ANDAMAN AND 1. 1 1 2 2 NICOBAR 4 4 1 1 6 6 ISLANDS ANDHRA 2. 53 53 362 362 PRADESH 202 202 312 312 426 426 ARUNACHAL 3. 3 3 22 22 PRADESH 13 13 43 43 11 11 4. ASSAM 26 26 136 136 54 54 89 89 152 152 5 BIHAR 81 81 548 548 354 354 474 474 914 914 6. CHANDIGARH 7 7 34 34 19 19 36 36 39 39 CHHATTISGA 7. 16 16 85 85 RH 58 58 92 92 163 163 DADRA AND NAGAR 8. HAVELI AND 0 0 4 4 9 9 6 6 6 6 DAMAN AND DIU 9. DELHI 172 172 875 875 572 572 800 800 1142 1142 10. GOA 4 4 30 30 13 13 33 33 27 27 11. GUJARAT 106 106 568 568 317 317 517 517 1015 1015 12. HARYANA 109 109 556 556 347 347 437 437 721 721 HIMACHAL 13. 17 17 62 62 PRADESH 35 35 51 51 96 96 JAMMU AND 14. 15 15 73 73 KASHMIR 42 42 51 51 120 120 15. JHARKHAND 25 25 153 153 122 122 161 161 273 273 16. KARNATAKA 101 101 1114 1114 535 535 652 652 1150 1150 17. KERALA 50 50 472 472 235 235 460 460 589 589 18. LADAKH 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 8 8 LAKSHADWE 19. 0 0 0 0 0 0 EP 0 0 0 0 MADHYA 20. 88 88 468 468 PRADESH 293 293 395 395 782 782 MAHARASHT 21. 199 199 1275 1275 RA 641 641 1010 1010 1628 1628 22. MANIPUR 0 0 6 6 7 7 5 5 14 14 23. MEGHALAYA 0 0 6 6 10 10 6 6 5 5 24. MIZORAM 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 2 2 25. NAGALAND 3 3 3 3 2 2 0 0 12 12 26. ODISHA 24 24 272 272 139 139 196 196 312 312 27. PUDUCHERRY 1 1 6 6 1 1 7 7 26 26 28. PUNJAB 46 46 214 214 159 159 205 205 330 330 29. RAJASTHAN 152 152 692 692 477 477 558 558 1104 1104 30. SIKKIM 0 0 6 6 5 5 6 6 12 1231. TAMIL NADU 46 46 330 330 178 178 295 295 902 902 32. TELANGANA 45 45 439 439 198 198 376 376 581 581 33. TRIPURA 0 0 15 15 8 8 20 20 17 17 UTTAR 34. 219 219 1537 1537 PRADESH 818 818 1165 1165 2186 2186 UTTARAKHA 35. 25 25 132 132 ND 68 68 126 126 195 195 WEST 36. 89 89 892 892 BENGAL 420 420 636 636 1080 1080 S.No. Mode 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Wise Received Disposed Received Disposed Received Disposed Received Disposed Received Disposed 1. By Web 772 772 3304 3304 5585 5585 3030 3030 3993 3993 2. By Phone 206 206 893 893 1172 1172 1749 1749 6969 6969 3. NCHAPP 546 546 1774 1774 3589 3589 2429 2429 961 961 4. WhatsAPP 0 0 0 0 713 713 1773 1773 3437 3437 5. UMANG 81 81 351 351 277 277 147 147 117 117 6. SMS 12 12 5 5 16 16 28 28 187 187 7. Others 106 106 29 29 37 37 67 67 382 382 *****