Amid a crackdown on several coaching centres for flouting norms, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) on Sunday imposed a fine of Rs 2 lakh on Shubhra Ranjan IAS Study for publishing misleading advertisements about its success in the UPSC Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2023.

The institute claimed “13 students in Top 100,” “28 students in Top 200,” and “39 students in Top 300” in its advertisements. It prominently featured the names and photos of successful candidates but failed to disclose the specific courses these students had taken.

MISLEADING PRACTICES IDENTIFIED

The CCPA found that most of the claimed successful candidates were enrolled in the Political Science and International Relations (PSIR) crash course and test series, which is designed for candidates who have already cleared the UPSC Preliminary examination. However, the institute offers more than 50 courses, creating a misleading impression that all courses had the same success rate.

Additionally, the institute used terms such as “Shubhra Ranjan IAS” and “Students of Shubhra Ranjan IAS” in its advertisements and letterheads, giving the false impression that Shubhra Ranjan is or was an IAS officer. The institute later claimed this was a clerical error, which the CCPA deemed untenable.

CONSUMER RIGHTS VIOLATIONS

The CCPA determined that the institute’s actions violated Section 2(28)(iv) of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, which defines misleading advertisements as those that deliberately conceal important information. The lack of transparency prevented prospective students from making informed choices about the courses.

The authority directed the institute to immediately stop the misleading advertisements and imposed a penalty of Rs 2 lakh.

CRACKDOWN ON COACHING INSTITUTES

The CCPA has been taking action against misleading claims by coaching centres. In November, the consumer protection body penalised Vajirao and Reddy Institute with Rs 7 lakh for false advertising as its advertisement claimed “617 selections out of 933 in UPSC CSE 2022” and “We are ranked at 1st position among the list of top UPSC Coaching Institutes in India”.

So far, the authority has issued notices to 45 coaching institutes for misleading advertisements and imposed penalties totaling Rs 63.6 lakh on 20 coaching institutes for similar violations.

CONSUMER GRIEVANCE RESOLUTIONS

The Department of Consumer Affairs, through the National Consumer Helpline (NCH), has been resolving complaints against coaching centres. Between September 2023 and August 2024, NCH facilitated refunds of Rs 1.15 crore to 432 students nationwide, addressing issues such as non-refunded enrollment fees.

All the refunds were processed promptly at a pre-litigation stage after the intervention of the department to the affected students from across the country who raised their grievances on NCH.