CONSUMER IS KING, SAYS SUPREME COURT

The Supreme Court on Wednesday noted that the policy of FDI in multibrand retail was for the benefit of the consumer, farmers and the retailers with the objective to eliminate middlemen.

“The policy is to free the economy from the middleman. Middleman is sucking our economy. These are suckers to be thrown out for direct benefit of consumers. If that is the objective of the policy what is wrong with it,” the bench asked.

“The middleman is a curse to Indian economy (sic). They work as sucker and they have to be thrown out and that is the object of the policy and you have to welcome it,” the bench said and added that the policy would bring choice for the consumers who are the real king. The bench noted “it is thus left to the choice of state governments whether or not to implement policy to allow FDI up to 51 per cent in multibrand retail.”

It rejected the contention of petitioner M. L. Sharma, an advocate, that the department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP) under its business rule was not empowered to make policy pronouncements.

The apex court said there was no merit in the petitioner’s contention that the Centre has no authority to formulate FDI policy.

“There is no challenge to the amendments in foreign exchange management (transfer or issue of security by a person, resident, outside India) Regulation, 2000), by which FDI in multi-brand retail sector was allowed,” the bench noted.