Amazon fined ₹1 lakh for selling Ram Mandir prasad:Ordered to pay within 15 days, was selling four types of sweets

A major action has been taken against e-commerce platform Amazon Seller Services Private Limited for selling sweets in the name of Ayodhya Ram Mandir Prasad. The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has imposed a fine of ₹1 lakh. This amount must be deposited with the authority within 15 days. Ghee laddoos, khoya laddoos, boondi laddoos, and cow milk pedas were being sold on Amazon under the name ‘Shri Ram Mandir Ayodhya Prasad’. In their listing, these were described as Ram Mandir prasad. Amazon had not taken any permission from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust for this. According to Bar and Bench, CCPA Chief Commissioner Nidhi Khare and Commissioner Anupam Mishra took action on 4 August, considering it fraud. The authority also said that selling ordinary sweets as Ram Mandir prasad could hurt the religious sentiments of crores of devotees. Now read in detail Religious symbols were used in product listings This matter first came to light in January 2024. Chandu Trading Company had listed 4 types of sweets on Amazon under the brand name ‘Bihar Brothers’. These included ghee laddoos, khoya laddoos, boondi laddoos, and pedas made from cow’s milk. Religious images were used in the listing of these products. Additionally, it was claimed that these sweets had the ‘blessing of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple, Ayodhya’. In the ingredients column, they were described as ‘Ram Mandir Prasad’. Listing happened just before Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha According to CCPA, these products were listed some time before the Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha on 22 January, 2024. After receiving a show-cause notice on 19 January in the matter, Amazon had removed these listings. This complaint was filed by the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) in January 2024. Amazon described itself as merely a marketplace In its defense, Amazon said that it is only an online marketplace and had no direct role in product listing, price determination, providing details, or sales. The company also cited the ‘safe harbor’ protection available under Section 79 of the Information Technology Act. CCPA rejected Amazon’s arguments. It stated that the Information Technology Act and Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 establish separate legal obligations. No marketplace entity can evade consumer protection responsibilities by citing its intermediary status under the IT Act, while it is earning commercial profits from transactions occurring on its platform. Sales of only ₹39,802 from 4 products Amazon told the CCPA that the four disputed product listings had total sales of ₹39,802. Of this, Amazon received ₹15,165 as service fees. The company also clarified that the previously stated sales of ₹25.26 lakh were not for these four products, but were the total gross merchandise sales of all the seller’s listings. The authority issued 2 orders 1- Permission now required for sale in the name of ‘Prasad’ 2- Seller information must be displayed prominently Swami Rajkumar Das said – Action should be such that it sets an example Swami Rajkumar Das, member of Shri Ram Temple Religious Committee, strongly objected to this matter. He said, such strict action should be taken against the Amazon company that in the future no company or organization can play with the sentiments of devotees. He said that he is currently out of Ayodhya. After returning to Ayodhya, he will present this matter before the members of the Religious Committee and officials of the Ram Temple Trust and demand strict action. He said – We are confident that we will take a strict decision in this matter soon. ​