The Kerala State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has upheld an order against Bata India for collecting ₹67 above the printed Maximum Retail Price on a pair of shoes. The Commission held that charging more than the printed MRP without complying with legal requirements amounted to deficiency in service and an unfair trade practice.
Customer Charged ₹1,066 for ₹999 Shoes
The case dates back to March 16, 2022, when a student of Government Law College, Ernakulam, bought a pair of shoes from Bata India’s Broadway showroom in Ernakulam. The shoes carried a printed MRP of ₹999, but the customer was billed ₹1,066.
When the customer questioned the additional amount, the store management allegedly said the government had permitted retailers to collect sales tax over and above the MRP on products sold after January 1, 2022.
Bata India Challenged District Order
The customer filed a complaint before the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Ernakulam, alleging deficiency in service and unfair trade practice. The District Commission partly allowed the complaint and directed Bata India to refund ₹67, pay ₹10,000 as compensation and ₹5,000 as litigation costs.
Bata India challenged the order before the State Commission. The company argued that Rule 18(3) of the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011, allowed retailers to collect an amount above the printed MRP when tax rates had increased.
Compensation Reduced, Refund Upheld
The State Commission observed that even where price revision is legally permissible due to a tax increase, the revised price must be displayed on the product through an appropriate sticker or marking. It also noted that the applicable rules require proper public notification and clear display of both the earlier and revised prices.
The Commission found that the shoes did not carry any revised price sticker or marking. It also held that Bata India failed to produce evidence showing that the revised price had been displayed as required by law.
While upholding the refund of ₹67, the State Commission reduced the compensation from ₹10,000 to ₹2,000 and litigation costs from ₹5,000 to ₹1,000. The ruling reiterated that charging above the printed MRP cannot be sustained unless the revised price is displayed transparently and in compliance with legal provisions.
