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Section 100: Act not in derogation of any other law

Consumer Protection Act • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

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Act 2019
Section 99 All 107 Sections of Consumer Protection Act Section 101

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 100

Section 100 establishes that the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 are in addition to and not in derogation of any other law for the time being in force, providing an independent and cumulative statutory remedy.

  • Cumulative and Concurrent Statutory Remedy: Explicitly provides that consumer remedies operate supplementally alongside remedies provided under other specialized enactments (such as RERA, Arbitration Act, Electricity Act, or Telecom Act).
  • Choice of Forum Vested in the Consumer: The consumer possesses the unfettered statutory election to pursue remedies before the consumer fora even when alternative statutory tribunals or arbitration clauses exist.
  • Non-Derogable Nature and Inoperability of Arbitration Ouster: Private commercial arbitration clauses or statutory dispute resolution provisions under general laws do not oust the summary jurisdiction of consumer commissions.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Vodafone Idea Cellular Ltd. v. Ajay Kumar Choudhary (2022) 13 SCC 508: A 2-Judge Bench of the Supreme Court held that Section 100 preserves consumer remedies against telecom service providers; Section 7B of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 does not bar consumer jurisdiction, overruling the restrictive reading in M. Krishnan.
  • Imperia Structures Ltd. v. Anil Patni (2020) 10 SCC 783: The Supreme Court held that remedies under the Consumer Protection Act are concurrent with and independent of remedies under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 (RERA); homebuyers are not barred from filing consumer complaints despite RERA registration.
  • IREO Grace Realtech (P) Ltd. v. Abhishek Khanna (2021) 3 SCC 241: A 3-Judge Bench held that an allottee may choose to initiate proceedings under the Consumer Protection Act or RERA, and Section 100 confirms that consumer remedies remain unimpaired by RERA.
  • Emaar MGF Land Ltd. v. Aftab Singh (2019) 12 SCC 751: The Supreme Court held that consumer disputes are non-arbitrable public remedies; an arbitration agreement contained in a contract cannot oust the statutory jurisdiction of consumer fora under the Act.
  • The Secretary, Thirumurugan Co-operative Agricultural Credit Society v. M. Lalitha (2004) 1 SCC 305: The Supreme Court held that consumer fora possess jurisdiction to entertain disputes between members and cooperative societies despite specialized dispute mechanisms in state cooperative enactments.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

Whenever the opposite party files an application under Section 8 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act or argues that RERA, the Electricity Act, or the Insurance Ombudsman has exclusive jurisdiction, invoke Section 100 alongside Vodafone Idea, Imperia Structures, and Emaar MGF to defeat the jurisdictional objection in limine.

Section 99 All 107 Sections of Consumer Protection Act Section 101