Hotels can charge you more than MRP for bottled water: What you should know
The court rejected the
government's argument that overcharging for pre-packed or packaged products was
an offence under the Legal Metrology Act
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NEWS : Can a hotel or a
restaurant charge for a bottle of drinking water more than the maximum retail
price marked on the container? The answer is yes. In a major blow to consumers,
the Supreme Court on Tuesday held that hotels and restaurants are not bound by
the maximum
retail price (MRP) when they sell bottled mineral water and packaged
food items.
The court rejected the government’s
argument that overcharging for pre-packed or packaged products was an offence
under the Legal Metrology Act, which attracts a fine of Rs 25,000 or a jail
term, according to ET.
A bench headed by Justice Rohinton
Nariman said the provisions of the law will not apply to hotels and
restaurants, and these establishments cannot be prosecuted for selling such
items above the MRP.
“It is not a case of simple sale.
Nobody goes to a hotel to buy or take away a bottle of mineral water,” the
bench observed, hearing a petition by the Hotels and Restaurant Association of
India.
Earlier, in its affidavit in
response to a petition filed by the Federation of Hotel and Restaurant
Associations of India (FHRAI), the Ministry of Consumer Affairs said that
overcharging for pre-packed or prepackaged products was an offence under the
Legal Metrology Act.
“Sale of packaged water over MRP by
hotels and restaurants may have implications regarding tax evasion as a bottle
purchased by a hotel at cost price, which should be sold at MRP or less, is
being sold at much higher prices, leading to possible loss of additional
revenue to the government in the form of service tax or excise duty etc.,” the
government had said.
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