A consumer complaint under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 goes to the District, State or National Commission according to the value of the goods or services paid as consideration: since 30 December 2021 that means up to Rs 50 lakh before the District Commission, above Rs 50 lakh up to Rs 2 crore before the State Commission, and above Rs 2 crore before the National Commission. The complaint can be filed where the complainant lives or works, must ordinarily be filed within two years, and is now filed online through e-Jagriti. Each of those three rules changed in some way from the 1986 Act, which is why older notes and older answers get them wrong.
Who counts as a consumer under the 2019 Act?
A consumer is a person who buys goods or hires services for consideration, but not one who buys for resale or for a commercial purpose. Section 2(7) adds two clarifications that are now tested regularly:
- goods bought and used exclusively to earn a livelihood by self-employment are not a commercial purpose;
- "buys any goods" and "hires or avails any services" include online, teleshopping, direct selling and multi-level marketing transactions.
The commercial purpose exclusion is applied by looking at the dominant intention of the purchase. In Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust v. Unique Shanti Developers (2019) the Supreme Court held that a trust buying flats to house its staff was not buying for a commercial purpose merely because it was a commercial entity; the question is whether the purchase is linked to profit generation.
Suppose a tailor buys two sewing machines for his own shop and they keep breaking down. He is a consumer, because he uses them to earn a livelihood by self-employment. If he bought twenty machines for a garment unit employing workers, the answer changes.
Professional services raise a separate question. Doctors were brought within the 1986 Act in Indian Medical Association v. V.P. Shantha (1995), but in Bar of Indian Lawyers v. D.K. Gandhi (2024) the Court held that advocates' services fall outside the 2019 Act.
How is pecuniary jurisdiction decided?
Pecuniary jurisdiction now depends only on the value of goods or services paid as consideration. Under the 1986 Act, the value of goods plus the compensation claimed decided the forum, so complainants could inflate a claim to reach a higher forum. That route is closed.
The Act itself, in Section 34, Section 47 and Section 58, sets limits of Rs 1 crore and Rs 10 crore, but each section lets the Central Government prescribe other values. It did so through the Consumer Protection (Jurisdiction of the District Commission, the State Commission and the National Commission) Rules, 2021 (G.S.R. 912(E), 30 December 2021).
| Commission | Limits in the Act as enacted | Limits under the 2021 Rules (current) |
|---|---|---|
| District Commission | Up to Rs 1 crore | Up to Rs 50 lakh |
| State Commission | Above Rs 1 crore up to Rs 10 crore | Above Rs 50 lakh up to Rs 2 crore |
| National Commission | Above Rs 10 crore | Above Rs 2 crore |
An exam answer should state both: the statutory figure and the figure prescribed by the rules, with the rules prevailing because the Act authorises them.
Take a hypothetical buyer who paid Rs 42 lakh for a flat and claims Rs 80 lakh as compensation and refund with interest. The complaint goes to the District Commission, because the consideration paid is Rs 42 lakh. The size of the claim is irrelevant.
Which Commission hears unfair contract and product liability claims?
Complaints against unfair contracts can be filed only before the State Commission or the National Commission. The District Commission has no jurisdiction over them at all. Section 47(1)(a)(ii) gives the State Commission unfair contract complaints where the consideration paid does not exceed Rs 10 crore, and Section 58(1)(a)(ii) sends larger ones to the National Commission. The 2021 Rules revised only the general limits in sub-clause (i) of each section, so the Rs 10 crore line for unfair contracts still stands as enacted.
Section 2(46) defines an unfair contract as one whose terms cause a significant change in the consumer's rights. Its list includes manifestly excessive security deposits, penalties wholly disproportionate to the loss caused by a breach, refusal to accept early repayment on payment of the applicable penalty, and a right to terminate unilaterally without reasonable cause. A builder-buyer agreement that charges the buyer 18 per cent interest for late payment but pays the buyer a token sum for years of delay is the classic example argued before Commissions.
Product liability is a separate head. Chapter VI (Sections 82 to 87) lets a complainant bring a product liability action against the product manufacturer, the product service provider or the product seller for harm caused by a defective product. Under Section 84, a manufacturer is liable for a manufacturing defect, a design defect, deviation from specifications, breach of express warranty or inadequate instructions and warnings, and Section 84(2) makes him liable even if he proves he was not negligent. A seller who is not the manufacturer is liable only in the situations listed in Section 86, such as having exercised substantial control over design or labelling, or having altered the product. Section 87 lists exceptions, including misuse or alteration of the product at the time of harm.
These actions are filed before the Commission that has pecuniary jurisdiction on the ordinary value test. The difference lies in what must be proved: product liability turns on defect and harm, while an ordinary complaint turns on deficiency in service, defect in goods or an unfair trade practice.
Where can the complaint be filed?
A complaint can be filed in the District Commission where any of the four connecting factors in Section 34(2) is found:
- where the opposite party, or each of them, resides, carries on business, has a branch office or personally works for gain;
- where any one of several opposite parties does so, with the Commission's permission;
- where the cause of action arises wholly or in part;
- where the complainant resides or personally works for gain.
The fourth option is the most significant change. A buyer in Lucknow who ordered a defective laptop from a seller in Bengaluru through an online platform can file in Lucknow. Section 47(4) gives the same four options before a State Commission, while the National Commission sits for the whole country.
Who can file, and within what time?
Under Section 35, a complaint may be filed by the consumer, a recognised consumer association, one or more consumers on behalf of many with the same interest (with the Commission's permission), or the Central Government, the Central Consumer Protection Authority or the State Government. The proviso expressly allows electronic filing, and the complaint must carry the fee prescribed under the rules.
The limitation period in Section 69 is two years from the date the cause of action arises. A Commission may entertain a complaint after that period on sufficient cause, but it must record its reasons for condoning the delay. Where the deficiency is continuing, as with a builder who keeps missing the possession date, the cause of action is generally treated as continuing.
Filing on e-Jagriti, step by step
Consumer complaints are now filed on e-Jagriti, the platform the Department of Consumer Affairs launched on 1 January 2025. According to the Department's year-end review, it integrated the older e-Daakhil, OCMS, CONFONET and NCDRC case systems and now works across District Commissions, State Commissions and the National Commission. The typical sequence on e-Jagriti is:
- Register with a mobile number and email, verified by OTP.
- Choose the Commission by applying the pecuniary limit and one of the territorial options above.
- Enter party details, the facts, the deficiency or unfair trade practice alleged, and the relief claimed.
- Upload the invoice, payment proof, correspondence and any expert report, with an index.
- Pay the prescribed fee online.
- Track admission, notices and hearing dates on the dashboard, and join virtual hearings where listed.
Before filing, many disputes can be resolved through the National Consumer Helpline, which takes grievances by toll-free number and WhatsApp and forwards them to companies registered as convergence partners. A plain-language walk-through of drafting the complaint itself is in the LegalFirms guide on how to file a consumer complaint.
What happens after the complaint is filed?
The District Commission ordinarily decides admissibility within twenty-one days of filing under Section 36. It cannot reject a complaint without hearing the complainant, and if it does not decide admissibility in time, the complaint is deemed admitted.
After admission, Section 38 sets the next steps:
- a copy goes to the opposite party within twenty-one days of admission;
- the opposite party has thirty days to file its version, extendable by up to fifteen days;
- where goods need testing, a sealed sample goes to a laboratory, which reports within forty-five days;
- the Commission should try to decide the complaint within three months of notice to the opposite party, or five months where testing is needed.
At the first hearing after admission, or later, the Commission may refer the parties to mediation under Section 37 if a settlement looks possible, with written consent within five days. Many consumer disputes are about money and settle well this way; the LegalFirms magazine piece on Lok Adalats as the fastest exit for consumers explains the related Lok Adalat route.
The District Commission may also review its own order for an error apparent on the face of the record, on application within thirty days, under Section 40. Orders are enforced like civil court decrees under Section 71, and wilful non-compliance is separately punishable under Section 72.
Appeals and the fifty per cent deposit
Each appeal has its own route. In the first appeal and in appeals from original orders, an appellant ordered to pay money must first deposit half of it.
| From | To | Time limit | Deposit before appeal | Provision |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| District Commission | State Commission | 45 days | 50% of amount ordered | s.41 |
| State Commission (original jurisdiction) | National Commission | 30 days | 50% of amount ordered | s.51(1) |
| State Commission (in appeal) | National Commission | No period stated in s.51(2); lies only on a substantial question of law | No deposit stated in s.51(2) | s.51(2) |
| National Commission (original jurisdiction) | Supreme Court | 30 days | 50% of amount ordered | s.67 |
Under the third proviso to Section 41, no appeal lies from an order recording a settlement reached through mediation. Note the second row: the 2019 Act introduced a second appeal to the National Commission, confined to a substantial question of law.
Common mistakes and exam traps
The questions that catch candidates are usually about what changed in 2019 and again in 2021:
- quoting Rs 1 crore and Rs 10 crore as current limits without mentioning the 2021 Rules;
- adding compensation claimed to the value of goods to fix jurisdiction;
- forgetting that the complainant's own residence is a valid forum;
- confusing the 45-day appeal from the District Commission with the 30-day appeals higher up;
- missing the fifty per cent pre-deposit;
- treating every business buyer as excluded, when the test is the dominant purpose of the purchase.
This is general information; for a specific dispute, consult a lawyer.
Key points to remember
- Jurisdiction is fixed by the consideration paid, not by the compensation claimed.
- Current limits under the 2021 Rules: Rs 50 lakh, Rs 2 crore, and above.
- A complainant can file where he or she resides or personally works for gain.
- Limitation is two years, with delay condonable on sufficient cause and recorded reasons.
- Admissibility is to be decided within 21 days, failing which the complaint is deemed admitted.
- Appeals: 45 days to the State Commission and 30 days from the State Commission's original orders, each with a 50 per cent deposit.
- Complaints are filed online on e-Jagriti, which absorbed e-Daakhil from 1 January 2025.
Where to go next
Read Chapter IV of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 section by section, then test yourself with the Consumer Protection Act mock tests. Pair it with the limitation and appeal provisions above when you revise for AIBE or judiciary prelims.