The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has initiated action against Amazon Seller Services Pvt Ltd concerning the sale of sweets on www.amazon.in under the name ‘Shri Ram Mandir Ayodhya Prasad’, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution said on Friday.

As per the statement released by the ministry, the action has been initiated based on a representation made by Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) alleging that Amazon is engaging in deceptive trade practices involving sale of sweets under the guise of ‘Shri Ram Mandir Ayodhya Prasad’.

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Earlier, CAIT Secretary General, Praveen Khandelwal in a tweet over social media platform X said, “Urgent action required against Amazon for misusing the name of Lord Ram and misleading it’s customers by selling Ayodhya Ram Mandir Prasad. Such unscrupulous trade practices must stop.”

Pursuant to the examination of the representation, it has been observed that various sweets/food products are available for sale on Amazon e-commerce platform claiming it to be ‘Shri Ram Mandir Ayodhya Prasad, the statement read.

CCPA has identified four products that are being sold on the website claiming to be the Ram Mandir Prasad. These are: Sri Ram Mandir Ayodhya Prasad – 250Grams || Raghupati Ghee Ladoo – (Type 1 Prasad- Pack of 1x250g); Ayodhya Ram Mandir Ayodhya Prasad – 250Grams || Khoya Khobi Ladoo – (Type 3 Prasad- Pack of 1x250g); Sri Ram Mandir Ayodhya Prasad – 250Grams || Ghee Bundi Ladoo – (Type 4 Prasad- Pack of 1x250g); and Sri Ram Mandir Ayodhya Prasad – 250Grams || Desi Cow Milk Peda – (Type 5 Prasad- Pack of 1x250g).

The action against Amazon by CCPA was headed by Chief Commissioner Rohit Kumar Singh.

Enabling the sale of food products online that make false representations misleads consumers regarding the genuine characteristics of the product, the ministry statement read.

Such practice falsely influences consumers to make purchase decisions they might not have otherwise taken, had the accurate attributes of the product been mentioned, it added.

Under Rule 4(3) of the Consumer Protection (e-commerce) Rules, 2020, no e-commerce entity shall adopt any unfair trade practice, whether in the course of business on its platform or otherwise.

The consecration ceremony of Ram Mandir at Ayodhya is set to take place on January 22. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be taking part in the consecration ceremony, which will likely start at 12.20 pm.

Central government offices and institutions will observe a half day on Monday to enable people to participate in the consecration of the idol at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training said.