The Centre is reportedly working on a new legislation to replace the existing Consumer Protection Act. Union Minister Ramvilas Paswan revealed on Tuesday that new penal provisions of Rs 50 lakh and five year imprisonment for celebrities promoting products without verifying the claims of the products will soon be introduced.
The proposed Consumer Protection Bill, 2016 has already been approved by the Parliamentary Standing Committee and would be introduced in Parliament in the next session, the Food and Consumer Affairs Minister informed reporters.
Also read: Celebrities Should be Liable for Misleading Ads: Ram Vilas Paswan
The new legislation to replace the existing Consumer Protection Act, 1986 would have stringent provisions against actors and other personalities doing advertisements for brands without verifying the products.
Some leading actors/actresses like Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan and others claim that the products they promote will add to one’s strength or one will have hair on a bald head, which is not true. Such things should stop. You advertise for an item only after being convinced of its results yourself.Ramvilas Paswan, Union Minister
In the new legislation, penalty for indulging in a “deceiving” advertisement would be enhanced to Rs 50 lakh from Rs ten lakh at present and the jail term to five years from the current two years, he said.
Paswan said the new legislation would have elaborate scope for a consumer to lodge complaint against a sub-standard product sitting at home and it would also enhance the monetary limits of district and state-level consumer redressal courts.
He said, the new legislation will make it mandatory that the complaint be registered within 21 days, and it would enhance the limit of a district court to hear complaints of up to Rs one crore from the present Rs 20 Lakh and state courts to Rs 14 crore from present Rs one crore.
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