Reliance Retail ordered to pay Rs 5,500 after charging Rs 1.80 extra for Patanjali biscuits during promotion

The Rajasthan State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has directed Reliance Retail to pay Rs 5,501.80 to a Jaipur consumer, holding that the company's failure to honour an advertised discount amounted to an "unfair trade practice."

The order was passed by a bench comprising judicial member Mukesh and member Raminivas Saraswat while hearing Reliance Retail Limited's appeal against a March 18, 2025, ruling by the Jaipur II District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission.

While the state commission upheld the district commission's finding that Reliance Retail had engaged in an unfair trade practice, it reduced the compensation for mental agony from Rs 10,000 to Rs 500, observing that the earlier amount was excessive in the circumstances of the case, reported Indian Express.


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What was the case?

The case stemmed from Reliance Retail's New Year promotional campaign, which ran from January 3 to February 10, 2021. Jaipur resident Virendra Singh approached the consumer forum, alleging that despite advertisements promising discounts across Reliance stores, he was charged the full price for a packet of Patanjali biscuits purchased on January 7, 2021. According to the order document, the retailer overcharged him by Rs 1.80 by failing to apply the advertised discount.

According to the complaint, Singh purchased grocery items worth Rs 276.50 from a Reliance Retail outlet. While reviewing the bill, he noticed that a packet of Patanjali biscuits with an MRP of Rs 30 had been billed at the full price, despite the retailer advertising a 6% discount on the product.

Had the discount been applied, the biscuits would have cost Rs 28.20, resulting in an excess charge of Rs 1.80. Singh alleged that although he sought a refund of the overcharged amount, the retailer refused, prompting him to approach the consumer forum.

Reliance Retail denied the allegations, contending that the Patanjali biscuits purchased by Singh were not covered under the promotional discount scheme. The company also argued that Singh had not raised any objection at the store and, therefore, no deficiency in service or unfair trade practice could be attributed to it.

In its appeal, the retailer further submitted that the district commission's award of Rs 10,000 as compensation for mental agony over an alleged overcharge of Rs 1.80 was grossly disproportionate.

The state commission was not persuaded by Reliance Retail's defence. It observed that the company had neither specifically denied the existence of the advertised 6% discount in its written statement nor produced any advertisement or document to show that Patanjali biscuits were excluded from the promotional offer.

The commission noted that the consumer had produced photographs and promotional material clearly advertising a 6% discount. Since Reliance failed to prove that the biscuits were outside the scheme, it held that Singh had been induced to make the purchase based on the promotional campaign and was wrongly denied the promised discount.

While affirming the finding of unfair trade practice, the commission held that the compensation awarded by the district commission required modification.

It observed that there is no fixed formula for determining compensation for mental agony and held that awarding Rs 10,000 for an overcharge of Rs 1.80 was disproportionate. It, therefore, reduced the compensation for mental agony to Rs 500.

However, the commission retained the directions requiring Reliance Retail to refund the excess amount of Rs 1.80 and pay Rs 5,000 towards litigation expenses, taking the total amount payable to the consumer to Rs 5,501.80.

Read the original order before the compensation awarded against Reliance was reduced: here: