Govt extends deadline for public comments on draft e-commerce rules till July 21

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The government on Monday extended till July 21 the deadline for public comments on proposed amendments to the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020. Earlier, the last date for public comments on the draft e-commerce rules was July 6. “It has now been decided to extend the timeline for receipt of comments/ suggestions on the draft E-Commerce Rules. Views/ comments/ suggestions on the proposed amendments may be sent by July 21, 2021,” a government notice said.

A senior official said that inadvertently the notice that was put out initially by the consumer affairs ministry mentioned the deadline as August 5 and subsequently, the date was changed. The deadline is July 21, the official added.

At a meeting organised by the consumer affairs ministry on July 3, many e-commerce players had requested the government to extend the July 6 deadline for submitting comments. On June 21, the ministry had released the draft e-commerce rules under which it banned the fraudulent flash sale and mis-spelling of goods and services on e-commerce platforms.

Proposed Amendments

Appointment of chief compliance officer/grievance redressal officer is among other key amendments proposed to the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020.

The government also proposed the registration of every e-commerce entity which intends to operate in India with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).

The proposed amendments also included e-commerce entities requiring to provide information not later than 72 hours of the receipt of an order from a government agency for prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of offences under any law. According to research firm CUTS International, many consumer organisations have felt that draft e-commerce rules should stick to only consumer-facing issues. The Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 were first notified in July last year. Their violation attracts penal action under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.