New Delhi: Observing that Byju’s actions indicate an “unfair trade practice”, the Hooghly District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has ordered the Bengaluru-based edtech company to not just refund the course amount of Rs 65,000 and cancellation amount of Rs 9,498 to a student’s father, but also pay an extra Rs 5,000 as compensation for causing him harassment and mental agony.
“Now, in view of all the aspects of the case, this commission is of the view that the OP (Byju’s), in spite of giving specific assurances about refund of the entire amount in case of dissatisfaction after the 15 days trial, deliberately tried to be indifferent towards the said refund and misled the complainant in one way or the other,” the commission observed in an order passed 27 September.
The commission was hearing a complaint by one Subhrajit Das, filed in February. Das claimed he bought the learning app for his daughter last year, with an instant payment of Rs 5,000, and arranged for payment of the balance amount of Rs 60,000 by taking a loan from a private finance company. According to the commission’s order, this loan was also arranged by Byju’s authorised agent, and was to be paid off by Das through monthly installments.
According to the complaint — quoted in the commission’s order — the authorised representative had assured Das that in case of dissatisfaction with the learning app, the entire amount would be refunded if intimated within 15 days of delivery of the product. Byju’s is then understood to have provided a tablet to Das through courier, for using the learning kit.
However, in July last year — within 15 days of the delivery — Das was sure that he wanted a refund because his daughter was “dissatisfied with the learning app and preoccupied with other academic programme”, according to the order. Das then wrote emails to Byju’s, requesting cancellation of the service, but to no avail.
In its order, the consumer panel said the “entire developments indicate at (sic) unfair trade practice and mala fide intention” on Byju’s part.
Das demanded Rs 2 lakh for harassment
Byju’s authorised representative asked Das to pay an additional amount of Rs 9,498 through UPI for the cancellation. Das paid this amount, and got a reassurance from the representative that no further amount would be deducted from Das’s bank account toward the EMI for payment of the course fee. However, the deductions of EMI from his bank account continued.
“The complainant intimated the matter to all concerned quarters by several mails and letters. But the same yielded no result,” the commission’s order notes. He then approached the commission in February, demanding a refund, as well as Rs 2 lakh for the harassment that he was put through.
According to the commission’s order, the order was being issued “ex-parte” — without hearing Byju’s — because, despite being sent a notice, Byju’s had only submitted a written response, and nobody had appeared on its behalf before the commission. In its written response, Byju’s had even expressed its intention to issue a refund to Das, according to the order.
(Edited by Uttara Ramaswamy)
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