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.
Amazon removed the listing of these products after receiving a notice from the Central Consumer Protection Authority.
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.
Four types of sweets were being sold online on Amazon claiming to be Ramlala’s prasad.
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’
- CCPA has directed Amazon to list products under names like ‘Prasad’, ‘Prasadam’, ‘Mahaprasad’, ‘Bhog’ or similar religious offerings only when it has a certificate of permission from the concerned religious institution.
- This directive will apply to products associated with 10 religious institutions. These include Ram Janmabhoomi Temple, Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam, Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine, Kashi Vishwanath Temple, and Jagannath Temple, among other institutions.
2- Seller information must be displayed prominently
- CCPA has also directed Amazon to prominently display complete information about the seller and its grievance officer. Additionally, it has been asked to strengthen keyword-based monitoring and immediate removal mechanism for identifying products with religious names.
- The authority has considered Amazon’s subsequent cooperation as a mitigating factor, but warned that stricter action may be taken if such mistakes are repeated in the future.
Swami Rajkumar Das said – Action should be such that it sets an example
Swami Rajkumar Das, head of Shriramvallabhakuj and member of Shri Ram Temple Religious Committee, said – strict decisions will be taken against the company soon.
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.
