New Delhi, Sep 18 (UNI) The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Ministry of Consumer Affairs whether a charitable trust can be considered a “consumer” under the Consumer Protection Act, 1986.
A bench comprising Justices Abhay Oka, Pankaj Mithal, and Ahsanuddin Amanullah permitted the amendment of the cause title to include the Union of India through the Ministry of Consumer Affairs as a respondent and posted the case for next hearing on October 16.
A division bench referred the issue to the larger bench in 2019, 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.
The court decided that the Union of India should be added as a party respondent and sought its assistance through the Ministry of Consumer Affairs. UNI SNG SSP