HC advisory on curbing greed to avoid e-commerce trap

The High Court (HC) has advised consumers to curb their greed and not succumb to temptation to not fall prey to the trap of e-commerce companies in the country.

The HC gave the advice on Sunday at a hearing of a writ petition seeking the stopping of eavesdropping on phone calls.

In hearing the writ, the HC bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Mustafizur Rahman also sought information about the country's e-commerce organisations. 

Advocate Mohammad Shishir Monir, lawyer for the writ petitioner, told the court, "E-commerce companies in our country at first offer two motorcycles for the price of one. Customers then get the motorcycle after paying the money which then goes to the e-commerce company through a Bangladesh Bank gateway. Then comes an offer of two free motorcycles if you buy two, four free motorcycles if you buy four, and the customer gets the motorcycles. But at one point, when a customer pays money to buy a large number, for example, eight motorcycles, the money is gone, but the motorcycles do not come."

"Our customers, tempted, are being deceived by e-commerce companies," he added.

At that point, the court told the lawyer, "You represent cases in the public interest. You should make the public aware, so that they curb their greed."

The HC set 29 September for the order on the writ petition seeking to put a stop to eavesdropping on the phone and an inquiry into leaked phone conversations. Ten Supreme Court lawyers filed the writ on 10 August. 

Shishir Monir appeared for the writ petitioners at the hearing while Deputy Attorney General Bipul Bagmar appeared for the state.

In the writ petition, the secretary to the post and telecommunication division, secretary to the information and communication technology division, the telecommunications and information technology ministry, and chairman of the Bangladesh telecommunications regulatory commission, were made defendants.