India’s consumer watchdog has cracked down on the online sale of unauthorised walkie-talkies, levying penalties totalling ₹44 lakh on leading ecommerce platforms and sellers for violations of consumer protection and telecom norms.
The Central Consumer Protection Authority has imposed fines of ₹10 lakh each on Amazon, Flipkart, Meesho and Meta Platforms, which operates Facebook Marketplace. Additional penalties of ₹1 lakh each were slapped on JioMart, Talk Pro, Chimiya and MaskMan Toys. The authority said some entities have already deposited the fines, while payments from others are still awaited.
The action followed a suo motu probe that uncovered widespread non-compliance in the sale of walkie-talkies online. The investigation flagged over 16,900 listings across multiple platforms that failed to meet regulatory requirements. Several more cases involving platforms such as IndiaMART, TradeIndia and others are still under examination.
According to the CCPA, ecommerce platforms allowed the sale of Personal Mobile Radios operating on restricted frequencies, without mandatory Equipment Type Approval certification and without proper disclosure of licensing conditions. Many devices were marketed as “licence-free” or “fully legal”, even though they operated on ultra-high frequency bands reserved for police, emergency response and disaster management agencies.
Under Indian rules, only devices operating strictly within the 446.0–446.2 MHz band qualify for licence exemption, and even those require prior technical clearance before sale. The watchdog held that listing such products without clear disclosures amounts to misleading advertising and unfair trade practice.
The probe revealed significant volumes sold despite gaps in compliance. Flipkart recorded tens of thousands of unit sales with missing or unclear frequency information, while Amazon, Meesho and JioMart also showed multiple instances of inadequate disclosures. Facebook Marketplace removed hundreds of listings after intervention but was found to have allowed repeated relisting.
Rejecting claims that platforms act merely as intermediaries, the CCPA said responsibility extends to marketplaces that enable discovery and promotion of regulated goods.
Citing public safety and national security concerns, the authority has also rolled out new guidelines for ecommerce platforms, mandating stricter verification, automated monitoring and regular self-audits to prevent illegal listings going forward.
