Pink Tax and the Consumer Rights of Women

What is Pink Tax?

Pink tax refers to gender based price discrimination where women pay more than men for the same products and services. In 2015 the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs released a study comparing the prices of over 800 products which found that products for women cost 7% more than the same products for men.

While in India we do not have any such study, one can easily compare the prices of equivalent goods and services and see the disparity. In 2018, the Government of India was to levy 12% GST on menstrual sanitary products, which was slashed only after a tireless campaign.

Pink Tax and Consumer Protection Act, 2019

While we lament the apparent unfairness, we forget that women are “consumers” under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (“Act”), and all consumers have certain rights.

Pink Tax – an Unfair Trade Practice

Section 2(47) of the Act defines “unfair trade practices” to include any statement which makes a false or misleading representation concerning the need for, or the usefulness of, any goods or services, materially misleads the public concerning the price at which a product or like products or goods or services, have been or are, ordinarily sold or provided.

It is plain that marketing products for women as something better, or different, or of more usefulness falls within the ambit of “unfair trade practices”.

Pink Tax and Misleading Advertisements

Section 2(28) of the Act defines “misleading advertisements” to include any advertisement, which gives false description of a product or service, gives false guarantee misleading the consumers, conveys express representation constituting unfair trade practice and deliberately not revealing essential information about the product.

Again, marketing products or services meant for women as worthy of a higher price amounts to misleading the consumer.

Recourse for the Aggrieved

Central Consumer Protection Authority (“CCPA”) may initiate an inquiry into violations of consumer rights or unfair trade practices either suo motu or on receipt of a complaint or as directed by the Central Government. CCPA may conduct a preliminary inquiry, followed by an investigation by the Director General or by the District Collector, if required. It has also been empowered to file complaints under the Act.

A consumer may also file a complaint with either the District, State, or National Commission as per the pecuniary jurisdiction.

Outcomes

If the CCPA, or the relevant Commission finds violations of consumer rights it may pass orders to recall goods or services; reimburse prices; and discontinue unfair practices.

In cases of false or misleading advertisements it may issue directions to discontinue such advertisement or to modify it to neutralise its effects. It may levy a punishment of imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years and a fine which may extend to ten lakh rupees; and for every subsequent offence, there is a punishment of imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years and a fine which may extend to fifty lakh rupees.

 

 

Hello! Me!

Today I read a blog post by me, from 2013. I felt my own thoughts, feelings, and desires. Felt like meeting an old close friend. People have many identities, many personalities, but I was never one such. Up until 2014 I was a monolith. I believe, and people who know me might agree, I never changed since kindergarten, not my face, not my mannerisms, not the way I felt. I was till 2014 a student, wanting to learn various subjects, read some, and also become a writer. That has been my identity all these years. So discovering that I have facets and layers is something very new. In 2014 I fell in love, and later got married. That year, and year after that was a blur, a roller-coaster of emotions. I was a totally different person. Love sure is crazy and also makes one crazy (in a good way!) By late 2015 I had a daughter, catching up with motherhood was quite something, especially for someone who never evolved since kindergarten! Suddenly, I had to make up for so much growth. And while I was at it, I discovered I was to have another baby soon. So by December 2016 I had two little girls. (One of my secret fantasies was to have twin girls. This was really close to that.) In the interim I also managed to have my first book published and had an offer to work on another one. With two little girls and two books I just went from one day to the other and never had the time to sit idle and reflect. Now, that my girls are both at preschool, I have some time to reflect and ponder. And once again after so many years, I sit idle, ponder, reflect, and write something from my heart. Reading the last blog by me, it seems as though time had stopped somewhere in 2013. I can’t believe I am in 2020. I still feel the same. Only when I think about these years it feels like I was on a adventure of some sorts and now I am back to me. So, hello! Me!

Redeveloping the sky

The sudden swell in redevelopment scares me. I sit at my window and gaze outside and I can see greenery and a beautiful, these days slightly overcast, sky. And yes both my window and I are located in Mumbai. I happen to be amongst the few lucky ones to have a real big garden view and not those miniature ones in building compounds. But apart from the greenery what I really enjoy is staring into the sky. The sky with its changing colours and various dimensions. It is pitch black around 4 am occasionally orangish black and it continues to remain so until suddenly sometime around 6 am its oozing bright sunshine. I always find this transition from dark to light sudden. I may keep peering into the sky and yet it catches me unawares. I don’t have a view of the sunrise, may be that’s why I don’t feel the transition. As the day progresses it keeps changing hue. Every time I look out I love to gaze at the marvelous expanse and as night pours in darkness floods my view. I hate to switch on the light. It seems shallow before the beauteous sunlight and its varied shades that I have been enjoying through the day. But nature has its way. And darkness has to come and go. However, it is not this hindrance that worries me. There is a building that is being redeveloped diagonally opposite mine. Along with the sky I have also been seeing its progress as floor after floor gets added on. And now that it has reached a substantial height it has begun to come in the way of my clear sky view. It continues to grow taller. The coconut tree just outside my window is now panned by this grey structure and not the grey rainy sky. I realize when it is completed I would have lost a substantial chunk of sky view. Then I console myself to change my angle thus effectively throwing the building out of my line of vision. I can see the sky again without any hindrance blocking my view. And it’s beautiful as ever. Towards evening I can clearly see its changing colour. It is orange at times and maroon at others and if I don’t switch on the light the house is partially dark yet it is filled with a dim reddish light. It’s a completely different hue. I love basking in it. And again the switch from this light to dark seems sudden. All gone, the tubelights must come on. Against a dark twinkling expanse of the sky the ghostly silhouette of the under construction building stands tall. Reasserting itself and taunting that all of the remaining buildings are also going to be redeveloped into way taller structures. Contracts are already being drawn up. Some days more and it will have tall companions. And when I look out next I will get to see only snatches of the sky from between the space distancing these tall buildings. My sky is going I will be left with only the greenery of the garden panned by tall buildings.

The death of the telegram, who's next? Google search – From indispensible to dispensable?

I have been reading nostalgic articles by people much older about the trajectory of the telegram – how it was so revolutionary and how immensely if affected and changed their lives and how now something that was so indispensible has been rendered redundant. It got me thinking what piece of technology impacted me immensely and changed the way I function and instantly Google search pops to mind. When I was in lower classes in school there was nothing like Google search. And that has me thinking, so how did I study? I wasn’t one who frequented the library, rarely so. There were many books on the shelves at home but I preferred they remain there neatly stacked. I realize I mainly looked to my text books, a Self-study series and a few other educational books that my mother insisted were essentially a part of my course (though they weren’t). In those far away days I remember the computer as a tool to either play games or unleash my artistry with Paint. Either I was too lazy to discover its potentials or probably most kids my age had restricted their knowledge to the same extent. I hope the later is true. As I entered higher standards the computer evolved into a tool to assist in making projects. The scourge for relevant pictures was immensely curtailed by Google search. Yet in those days I’d print the pictures and stick them onto chart papers, unlike my nieces who conveniently paste everything onto PPT slides, transfer the file onto a pen drive and leave for school without any hassle. I remember my projects to be at the other end of the no hassle spectrum. I would employ water colours, felt pens, occasionally glitter. My master piece would occupy the central position in the house, sprawling across the floor, and would block convenient passageway. It would leave visible marks on the floor, walls and of course me and my clothes. It was never hassle free neither was the process neat. But I must say I am proud of each and every one of those charts. To me they were all my own Mona Lisas and definitely more cheery and vibrant. I am not certain whether the feeling of creation with a similar intensity can be generated by a PPT. But it is definitely much cleaner to carry a pen drive, especially during the rains, than my masterpieces. Coming back to my developing relationship with Google search. As I moved onto college the strain of excessive and elaborate chart papers was off my back. There was no Work Experience or EVS. So now if I used Google search it was with no specific purpose. However, even though chart papers were off my back I realized a new burden was to be added called – reference. Apparently, while in college there isn’t anything like one or two authoritative books of medium size in which a complacent person may repose her trust. One has to go to the library and read through tomes for any decent degree of study. And so I tentatively entered the library. There were walls of books on all sides of me. I could choose from where I wished to study. I gathered my own material. Strangely, I liked the power I wielded over the contents of my study material. Sometime around then I discovered what happens if I search for material on Google. A plethora of information was just a click away and within the confines of my house. The significance of this statement may seem ridiculous to those younger to me who have grown up when ‘Google’ was not just a proper noun but also a verb. However, I have experienced its evolution into a verb and yet it evolved into a verb early on in my life so even though theoretically I know I have lived in a Google – less world I can’t imagine getting through this day without Google. I realize people must have felt the same way about telegrams some day. And yet life seems much easier without them (and with Gmail). This makes me dwell upon the corollary that one day Google search will be rendered redundant. Will ‘to google’ then appear in the dictionary as archaic. old use. in ancient days enabled people to locate information based on keywords from a virtual information cloud. And if the telegram is replaced by instant emails what would replace Google search? Would I have a devise so connected to me that it detects my very thoughts and instantly generates only relevant results and collates them in a format uniquely suitable for my requirements? Realistically, I look forward to days of e-libraries. With the advent of availability of Google search on phones one has immense information and e-books not only a click away but the click itself is merely a pocket away. And yet I feel the necessity of visiting a good library from time to time. And this is not owing to my loyalty to or nostalgia for tangible objects. Google search makes available a wide variety of information, connects me to articles and research papers, books and scholarly treatises, magazines and novels and so on and so forth. I have access to some of these for free and some need to be purchased. Whereas some scholarly treatises that have been traced are yet in the libraries as hard backs. Once all this knowledge is converted to e-format and made available by e-libraries for a reasonable fee, probably the best e-library that can guarantee complete and unrestricted access to all the search results that encompasses everything from trivia to scholarly treatises might render both Google search and libraries redundant. A beginning in this direction, that I am aware of, is British Council’s ebrary. Though it has a very limited collection as yet. The mind boggles at the contemplation of the convenience that shall be derived from the device that necessitates that we bid farewell to Google search.

Lucifer’s Contract

A tale of cunning and conceit. Of one Doctor Faustus whose waxen wings did mount above his reach. A tale above all of trickery. Of crafty equivocation of contract laws that caused fair Lucifer to weep.

Faustus hath entered into a deed with Lucifer granting unto him Faustus’s soul at the expiry of four and twenty years certain conditions being met. Poor Lucifer unaware was he of the intricacies of contract laws! Not so easy it is to contract and get what you want for ignorance of law is no excuse.

God the owner of innumerable souls bestows them upon humans to be utilized during their lifetime and to be retuned upon expiry of the said lifetime. In consequence making Faustus a mere trustee of the movable property soul. And as is well known, though not by Lucifer, that a contract made by trustee in excess of his powers cannot be specifically enforced, so could poor Lucifer not obtain specific enforcement of his deed with Faustus.

Moreover, the soul promised by Faustus to Lucifer was one of the innumerable souls owned by God. This soul wasn’t specific movable property. For God makes all souls equal. It is the use to which each soul is put that characterizes one human from the other. Nevertheless souls remain indistinguishable. A soul may easily be replaced with any other other soul all being one and the same. An again as is well known, though not by Lucifer, that a contract for movable property cannot be specifically enforced unless the property were specific movable property of irreplaceable nature, so could poor Lucifer not obtain specific enforcement of his deed with Faustus.

On expiry of four and twenty years as Faustus lay upon this death bed God’s claim to movable property soul was upheld. And thus was the treacherous of all, most astute conniving and devious Lucifer tricked by simple contract laws!

What happened back then?

The youth rebellion is a worldwide phenomenon that has not been seen before in history… Millions of young people all over the world are fed up with shallow unworthy authority running on a platform of bullshit.
–William Burroughs, “The Coming of the Purple Better One,” Esquire, November 1968.

Once upon a time in a village named Naxalbari there lived a peasant. He was attacked by landlords and they were counter attacked by those who were later named Naxalites. So began the saga of Naxalism.

Well not exactly so. Naxalism was a manifestation of a global desire to rebel. Back then world over the educated privileged youth, behaved in a very peculiar fashion. Instead of bunking lectures and watching movies or plays or whatever was in vogue then, as is the duty of all good students, they were hanging around debating politics, Mao Zedong, revolution, organizing protest rallies, hurling bottles and brick-bats!

The 60s were a turbulent decade and a number of events in conjunction led to such behavior. The post-war era had heralded peace with eagerness. People had suffered significantly for decades. Loved ones had been lost and generations were wiped out. Contrary to this misery were the theories of communism that promised an end to all suffering.

The general mood was infused with a strong desire for and belief in an egalitarian society. The decade was characterized by decolonization and independence movements. Alongside was the civil rights movement together with Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech “I Have a Dream”. And, King’s Student Nonviolent Coordination Committee or the SNCC under Stokely Carmichael’s slogan “Black Power!” was heading towards increasingly aggressive rebellion. As such campus-based movements were popular in the Paris student revolution and the Students for a Democratic Society in the US. What’s more, feminism was also at its zenith. People from all sectors craved equality. And communism put on offer the ‘all men are equal’ rule. Consequently, rebellion was everywhere. This made the World Revolution seem imminent with the famous slogan “the East is Red and the West is Ready”.

Anti-capitalist sentiment was further fuelled by the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro and the heroic guerilla fighter image of Che Guevara. Che viewed capitalism as a “contest among wolves” where “one can only win at the cost of others.” On similar lines, Arthur Miller declared in All My Sons “You don’t love a man here [in a capitalist society], you eat him!” The idea of replacing selfishness with selflessness was contemplated with admiration. Charged with such moralistic emotions, the youth of this era leaned towards communism as opposed to the reviled capitalism.

All the disparate protest movements of this decade were combined in opposition to the Vietnam War. Prevalent anti-war sentiment was manifest in the pop-culture of the times with Country Joe’s Fish Cheer, in the 1969 Woodstock Festival that went,

Yeah, come on all of you, big strong men,
Uncle Sam needs your help again.
He's got himself in a terrible jam
Way down yonder in Vietnam
So put down your books and pick up a gun,
We're gonna have a whole lotta fun.
And it's one, two, three,
What are we fighting for ?
Don't ask me, I don't give a damn,
Next stop is Vietnam;
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well there ain't no time to wonder why,
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.

This universal hatred for the Vietnam War created a general distaste for the U.S. which was extended to its ideology –capitalism.

Such was the global scenario. Closer home post independence, Indian youth was also gripped with analogous idealistic sentiments. Nehru himself had a socialist bent with the vision to establish a Welfare-State. But the 60s youth felt betrayed, sold-out and irrevocably ruined by their elders. This was a generation that had grown up in the wake of India’s independence, coupled with the worldwide move towards self-determination and equal rights. They dreamt of changing the world. However, the emergency, the still prevalent injustices and class distinctions and the Sino-India war shattered their hopes of a socialist haven.

Osborne’s Look Back in Anger heralded the “angry young man”. This angry frustration was manifest in Indian universities as well, wherein angst driven quixotic youngsters felt that independence had not attained its true aim. Democracy had not been achieved. In the words of Kobad Ghandy, “we think the society is in a semi-feudal, semi-colonial state and there is a need to democratise it.”

Against this backdrop, Vijay Tendulkar and Adil Jussawala produced revolutionary works heavily critical of prevalent societal systems. Kobad, Anuradha, Asghar Ali Engineer and Krishnaraj set up the Committee for the Protection of Democratic Rights. The Progressive Youth Movement was joined by many young people. At a time Navroz Modi was editor of its magazine Lalkaar. Study circles were regularly organized. Students vigorously debated communist theories.

And post the skirmish in the village called Naxalbari, these communist youngsters headed towards it and reacted under the leadership of communists such as Charu Majumdar. Their brand of communism came to be christened as Naxalism after the village whose inhabitants triggered it. So the worldwide wave of an idealistic youth desire for equality and resultant discontent hit India as Naxalism.

Politically correct !!!

It was decided by a politician that another’s visit should be greeted by ‘something black’. Why not re-make a ‘Simon go back’? He sure looks like a Simon. The other enthusiastic youth politician, like most youngsters, on a sudden impulse changed course and decided to experience what his wise colleague had attempted to describe in 140 words. So keeping this adventure in mind he landed penniless, on an impulse, at a railway station. By the sheer number of dramatic pauses that our railways take it was generally felt that a padh yatra would have served the cause better.

Certain movie makers paying regard to the dictionary of politicians thought better of doing away with certain names. So what if it was once a fact. Be it moon, or sun, or what you please. Henceforth they vowed it shall be so.

It had once been Marie Antoinette’s advice to those who could not buy bread to eat cake. And now it was adviced to those who could not buy sugar that it was not essential to living. So diabetic patients cheered for now on all were supposed to join them.

Also a new self- defence strategy was evolved. People were informed that a poor look keeps the bashers away. Fashion designers, it is heard are soon to release a new ‘poor avoid-rage’ look. The highest paid Bollywood actors are to be engaged as brand ambassadors.

What’s more, it was very thoughtfully concluded that a taxi driver must be able to converse with his passengers of local origin. The passenger might always be in need of some good counsel. And where better can one find it, if not with a taxi driver who has learnt it all by driving behind insightful trucks. Should not he share his knowledge, if so it is essential that he should be familiarised with the local tongue.