Consumer Protection Act and the e-commerce rules, legal metrology declarations, dark patterns, advertising and endorsements, marketplace liability and product recalls.
8 regulators, 12 key statutes and 14 compliance obligations, plus 10 common dispute types and 19 due-diligence checks. 6 entries are marked for verification because the rule is state-specific, recently amended, or commenced in stages — those say what to check rather than stating a date we cannot stand behind.
| Regulator | What it decides |
|---|---|
| Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) | Class complaints, misleading advertisement orders, product recall and refund directions, and the dark patterns and endorsement guidelines. |
| Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissions (NCDRC / State / District) | Individual and class consumer complaints against sellers, platforms and manufacturers. |
| Department of Consumer Affairs and the Legal Metrology Department (state) | Packaged commodity declarations, e-commerce display requirements, and verification of weighing and measuring instruments. |
| Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) | Licensing of food e-commerce operators, sellers and cloud kitchens; labelling and recall. |
| Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) | Intermediary due diligence for the marketplace's safe harbour, and the DPDP framework. |
| Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) | FDI policy for e-commerce — marketplace permitted, inventory-based prohibited. |
| Reserve Bank of India (RBI) | Payment aggregators, tokenisation, recurring payments and prepaid instruments used in loyalty and wallet products. |
| Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) | Self-regulatory code for advertising, whose findings are increasingly referred to and relied on by the CCPA. |
| Statute | Year | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Consumer Protection Act | 2019 | Creates the CCPA, statutory product liability in Chapter VI, unfair contract terms, and jurisdiction based on where the consumer resides — which is why a single seller can be sued anywhere in India. |
| Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules | 2020 | Mandatory disclosures, a grievance officer who must acknowledge within 48 hours and redress within one month, no manipulation of price, no cancellation charges unless borne equally, and country of origin display. |
| Legal Metrology Act | 2009 | With the Packaged Commodities Rules, 2011, requires the declarations on every pre-packaged commodity and requires them to be displayed on the e-commerce listing itself. |
| Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns | 2023 | Specifies named practices — false urgency, basket sneaking, confirm shaming, forced action, subscription trap, drip pricing and others — as unfair trade practices enforceable by the CCPA. |
| Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements | 2022 | Due diligence for endorsers, disclosure of material connection, and specific rules for bait, surrogate and free-claim advertising. |
| Information Technology Act | 2000 | Section 79 safe harbour for a marketplace, subject to the due diligence in the Intermediary Guidelines, 2021 — a marketplace that curates and controls inventory risks losing it. |
| Digital Personal Data Protection Act | 2023 | Consent for marketing and profiling, children's data, and the retention limits that collide with 'keep everything for analytics'. — verify: Phased commencement through the DPDP Rules; confirm what is in force. |
| Food Safety and Standards Act | 2006 | E-commerce food business operators need their own licence, and the platform is responsible for the licence status of its sellers. |
| Bureau of Indian Standards Act | 2016 | Quality Control Orders now cover toys, footwear, helmets, electronics and much else; selling or storing non-conforming goods is prohibited. |
| Sale of Goods Act | 1930 | Implied conditions as to description, merchantable quality and fitness for purpose still underlie every consumer claim about goods. |
| Competition Act | 2002 | Deep discounting, exclusivity and preferential listing have been the subject of CCI investigations into large marketplaces. |
| Foreign Exchange Management Act | 1999 | Press Note 2 of 2018 and the NDI Rules: an entity with foreign investment cannot own inventory it sells, cannot control the seller and cannot influence price. |
| Obligation | Form | When | If missed | Authority |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grievance officer acknowledgement and redress | — | Monthly. Acknowledge every consumer complaint within 48 hours and redress it within one month of receipt. | Unfair trade practice proceedings before the CCPA, and loss of the marketplace's due diligence defence. | Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 Rule 4(5) |
| Intermediary grievance handling under the IT Rules | — | Monthly. Acknowledge within 24 hours and dispose of within 15 days; act on court or authorised government orders within 36 hours. | Loss of safe harbour under section 79 of the IT Act for third-party seller listings. | IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 Rule 3 |
| Keep the mandatory platform disclosures current | — | Quarterly. Display the legal name and address of the entity and of every seller, customer care details, the grievance officer, the return, refund, exchange and warranty policy, the total price with a breakdown, and the country of origin. | CCPA orders to discontinue the practice, penalties, and a straightforward finding of unfair trade practice. | Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 Rules 4, 5 and 6 |
| Legal metrology declarations on every listing | — | Quarterly. The declarations required on the package must also be displayed on the platform listing. | Prosecution per offending package, usually compounded but rapidly expensive at scale. | Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011 Rule 6 |
| TCS return by the e-commerce operator | GSTR-8 | Monthly. By the 10th of the month following the month of collection. | Interest and late fee; and the seller's credit for the tax collected does not appear, which becomes a seller dispute. | CGST Act, 2017 section 52 |
| Collect tax at source on supplies through the platform (verify: The rate was reduced from 1% to 0.5% (0.25% CGST plus 0.25% SGST). Confirm the rate applicable to the period being advised on.) | — | Monthly. Collect at the notified rate on the net value of taxable supplies made through the platform and deposit with the return. | The operator is liable for the amount not collected, with interest. | CGST Act, 2017 section 52 |
| Withhold tax on e-commerce participants (verify: The rate was reduced from 1% to 0.1%. Confirm the rate for the relevant period and the small-seller exemption threshold.) | Form 26Q / 27Q | Monthly. Deduct at the notified rate on the gross amount of sales or services facilitated, and deposit by the 7th of the following month. | The operator becomes an assessee in default, with interest and penalty. | Income-tax Act, 1961 section 194-O |
| FSSAI licence for the platform and licence checks on food sellers | — | On renewal. Hold a central licence as an e-commerce food business operator and verify that every food seller holds a valid licence or registration. | Prosecution under the FSS Act and delisting orders; the platform is answerable for unlicensed sellers. | Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006; FSS (Licensing and Registration) Regulations, 2011 |
| FSSAI annual return | Form D1 | Annual. By 31 May each year for manufacturers, importers, packers, re-labellers and relevant food business operators. | Late fee of Rs 100 per day of delay, and an adverse record at licence renewal. | FSS (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011 |
| Self-audit of the purchase and subscription flows for dark patterns (verify: The Department of Consumer Affairs has issued advisories asking platforms to self-audit and declare. Confirm whether a declaration is currently expected and to whom.) | — | Annual. Review the interface against the thirteen specified dark patterns and remove any that are present. | The listed practices are unfair trade practices, actionable by the CCPA with orders to discontinue and to compensate. | Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023 |
| Extended producer responsibility for plastic packaging (verify: Portal deadlines and the quarterly filing requirement have moved repeatedly. Confirm the current calendar.) | — | Annual. Register as a brand owner or importer on the CPCB EPR portal and file the annual return against the target. | Environmental compensation on the shortfall, levied per tonne. | Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016 and the EPR Guidelines |
| Product recall and consumer notification | — | On the trigger event. On identifying a safety defect, stop sale, notify the regulator and affected consumers, and offer refund, replacement or repair. | The CCPA can order a recall, refund and discontinuation; product liability under Chapter VI runs in parallel. | Consumer Protection Act, 2019 section 20; FSS (Food Recall Procedure) Regulations, 2017 for food |
| Annual review of terms, policies and advertising claims | — | Annual. Re-check the terms of use, returns policy, warranty statements and live advertising claims against the current guidelines. | Stale claims and unfair terms are the easiest CCPA findings to make and the hardest to defend. | Consumer Protection Act, 2019; CCPA guidelines |
| Annual review of the marketplace FDI conditions (verify: The requirement for a statutory auditor's certificate and its due date are set out in the policy and have been re-stated in circulars. Confirm the current position.) | Statutory auditor's certificate on marketplace compliance | Annual. Confirm no ownership or control over seller inventory, no seller contributing more than the permitted share of sales, and no direct or indirect influence on price. | Breach of the FDI policy is a FEMA contravention, and the CCI and enforcement agencies have both taken interest. | FEM (Non-debt Instruments) Rules, 2019; Press Note 2 of 2018 |
| Dispute | Forum | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Consumer complaints against sellers and platforms | District, State and National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissions | The consumer can file where they reside, so a national platform faces claims everywhere. |
| CCPA proceedings for misleading advertising | Central Consumer Protection Authority, appeal to the NCDRC | Orders can require discontinuation, corrective advertising and penalties on the endorser as well. |
| Product liability claims | Consumer commissions under Chapter VI of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 | Reaches the manufacturer, the seller and the service provider without privity. |
| Counterfeit and trade mark infringement | Commercial Court / High Court, with John Doe and dynamic injunctions | Platforms are usually joined for disclosure of seller details rather than as infringers. |
| Seller delisting and account suspension disputes | Arbitration under the seller agreement; occasionally writ where a public element is argued | Held-back settlements are the real commercial pressure point. |
| Legal metrology prosecutions | Magistrate's court, usually compounded | Per-package offences make volume the aggravating factor. |
| Competition investigations into marketplaces | Competition Commission of India, appeal to NCLAT | Preferential listing, exclusivity and deep discounting are the recurring allegations. |
| FDI policy and enforcement proceedings | Enforcement Directorate under FEMA; writ challenges in the High Court | Structure, not intention, is what is examined. |
| Payment and chargeback disputes | Arbitration, and the RBI Ombudsman where a regulated entity is involved | Allocation of fraud loss between platform, aggregator and issuer. |
| Retail lease disputes | Arbitration or civil court; commercial court where the value threshold is met | Revenue share computation, exclusivity breach and lock-in enforcement. |
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