Supreme Court Seeks Centre's View On Whether Charitable Trust Is A “Consumer” Under Consumer Protection Act, 1986

The definition of “consumer” under Section 2(1)(d) of the 1986 Act includes any “person” who buys goods or avails services for consideration, excluding those who purchase goods or services for resale or commercial purposes.

“We will include Union of India as a party. We need your assistance in interpreting the word person under the old Act” Justice Abhay Oka said.

A bench of Justice Abhay Oka, Justice Pankaj Mithal, and Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah permitted the amendment of the cause title to include the Union of India through Ministry of Consumer Affairs as a respondent and posted the case on October 16, 2023.

The issue was referred to the larger bench in 2019 by a division bench, which observed that the definition of “person” under the Act is inclusive and could potentially include charitable trusts.

During the hearing today, the counsel for the petitioner-trust argued that when a definition is inclusive it should not be given restricted interpretation.

Th Court decided that Union of India should be added as a party respondent.

The division bench while referring the matter to a larger bench had noted that the definition of “person” in Section 2(1)(m) of the Act includes a wide range of entities such as firms, cooperative societies, Hindu undivided families, and other associations of persons, whether registered or not.

The bench suggested that this definition might also encompass charitable trusts, thus warranting a reconsideration of the issue. The division bench said that excluding trusts from the definition of “consumer” might not align with the legislative intent of the Act.

The Consumer Protection Act, 1986, and the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (which replaced the 1986 Act), define “consumer”, “complainant”, and “person” with some differences.

Under the 1986 Act, a “complainant” includes a consumer, a voluntary consumer association, government bodies, and multiple consumers with similar interests. A “consumer” is any person who buys goods or avails of services for consideration, excluding those purchasing for resale or commercial purposes. The term “person” includes firms, Hindu undivided families, cooperative societies, and associations of persons.

Under the 2019 Act, a “complainant” includes a consumer, voluntary consumer associations, government bodies, central authorities, legal heirs, and legal guardians of minors. A “consumer” refers to someone buying goods or services for consideration but expands to include online and teleshopping transactions. The term “person” is expanded to include individuals, firms, Hindu undivided families, corporations, and artificial juridical persons.

Case no. – SLP(C) No. 18636/2019

Case Title – Administrator Smt. Tara Bai Desai Charitable Opthalmic Trust Hospital, Jodhpur v. Managing Director Supreme Elevators India Pvt. Ltd & Ors.