Sakina Tashrifwala
Published on: 14 September 2022 at 19:05 IST
Amazon has filed a lawsuit with the Delhi High Court in an effort to overturn a decision made by the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) fining the e-commerce site ₹1 lakh for selling pressure cookers without the Bureau of India Standard (BIS) mark.
On Tuesday, single-judge Justice Yashwant Varma heard the plea and instructed the CCPA’s attorney to seek guidance in the matter.
The case has been set aside for hearing next Monday.
Amazon was represented by Senior Advocate Rajiv Nayar, who maintained that the decision had been issued without proper authority and that the platform was just acting as a mediator in the Shreya Singhal case.
According to Nayar, it is impossible for it to comply with the CCPA decision calling for the recall of more than 2,200 pressure cookers.
He continued by saying that Amazon is similar to a mall owner and that the owner of the mall cannot be hauled off for selling fake apples just because some shop is selling them.
“We are offering a platform. As soon as they (CCPA) pointed it out, we put them (the company selling pressure cookers) off our marketplace,” Nayar stated.
But Justice Varma nonetheless questioned Nayar about why Amazon doesn’t carry out a preliminary exercise concerning whether the vendor has a BIS certificate and whether such an investigation is not possible.
He also inquired as to whether websites like Amazon are required to carry out such an exercise.
According to Nayar, Amazon is an e-commerce site, so it cannot trigger an investigation.
The CCPA had given Amazon notice in August to notify its customers, recall all 2,265 pressure cookers sold through the platform, and pay back the purchase price to customers. Additionally, it was instructed to provide a compliance report in 45 days.
The CCPA observed that when Amazon earns commercially from each sale of the product listed on its e-commerce platform, it cannot disassociate itself in case of issues arising from the sale of these items.
Amazon has been asked to submit a compliance report within 45 days.
“The company was also directed to pay a penalty of ₹ one lakh for allowing the sale of pressure cookers in violation to the QCO on its platform and violating rights of consumers,” the statement states.
The CCPA had also ordered Amazon to pay a penalty of Rs. 1 lakh (QCO) for authorising the sale of pressure cookers in “violation” of the Quality Control Order.