Quick answer: File your consumer complaint online at e-Jagriti (https://e-jagriti.gov.in), the single national portal that replaced e-Daakhil on 1 January 2025. Pick the forum by the money you paid for the goods or service, not the compensation you want: up to Rs 50 lakh goes to the District Commission (DCDRC), Rs 50 lakh to Rs 2 crore to the State Commission (SCDRC), above Rs 2 crore to the National Commission (NCDRC). You have two years from the problem to file.
A consumer complaint is a formal grievance under the Consumer Protection Act 2019 against a seller or service provider for a defect in goods, a deficiency in service, an unfair trade practice or overcharging. You file it at a Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission and ask for a refund, replacement, compensation or removal of the defect. Since 1 January 2025, the filing happens online on e-Jagriti.
A relative in our family paid Rs 38,000 to a coaching institute, the batch never started, and the office kept saying “next week” for three months. The instinct is to give up because “court” sounds expensive and far away. It is not. The consumer forum was built precisely for this: the fee on a Rs 38,000 claim is zero, you can file from home on e-Jagriti, and under the 2019 Act you can file in your own city because the law now lets you complain where you live, not only where the company sits. This guide walks the whole path: choosing the forum, the fee, the e-Jagriti steps, what the complaint must say, and how to appeal if you lose.
The single most important and most misunderstood rule: the forum is decided by the value of the goods or services you paid as consideration, fixed by the Consumer Protection (Jurisdiction of the District Commission, the State Commission and the National Commission) Rules, 2021 (notified 30 December 2021). It is not the compensation figure you are claiming. A person who paid Rs 40,000 but claims Rs 5 lakh in compensation still files at the District Commission, because the consideration paid was Rs 40,000.
| Forum | Consideration paid | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| District Commission (DCDRC) | Up to Rs 50 lakh | Your district |
| State Commission (SCDRC) | Above Rs 50 lakh to Rs 2 crore | State capital / benches |
| National Commission (NCDRC) | Above Rs 2 crore | New Delhi |
Territorial jurisdiction (Section 34). A District Commission complaint can be filed where: the opposite party resides, works for gain or has a branch office; the cause of action arose, wholly or in part; or where you, the complainant, reside or personally work for gain. That last ground is the citizen-friendly change in the 2019 Act: you no longer have to travel to the seller's city.
The fee is set by the Consumer Protection (Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissions) Rules, 2020 and is also scaled to the consideration paid. For the District Commission:
On e-Jagriti the fee is paid online through the integrated payment gateway as part of filing, so there is no separate demand draft to courier for most District filings. Most everyday complaints, mobile phones, appliances, coaching fees, small builder issues, fall in the Nil-fee band.
e-Jagriti (https://e-jagriti.gov.in) is the unified portal run by the Department of Consumer Affairs that merged e-Daakhil, the NCDRC case-management system, OCMS and CONFONET into one place from 1 January 2025. It handles District, State and National filings, online fee payment and virtual hearings.
A complaint that gets admitted and not returned for defects must clearly state:
The two-year limitation (Section 69). A Commission “shall not admit a complaint unless it is filed within two years from the date on which the cause of action has arisen.” File late and it is time-barred, unless you ask for condonation and satisfy the Commission of “sufficient cause”, which it must record in writing. Do not bank on condonation: file inside two years.
The Act builds a clear ladder. Each rung has its own clock, so diarise the date you receive the order.
All three appeal stages are filed and tracked on e-Jagriti as well.
No. The consumer forum is designed for citizens to appear in person, and you can file and argue your own case on e-Jagriti. A lawyer helps for high-value or legally complex disputes, but for an everyday refund or deficiency claim, most people file themselves.
Two years from the date the cause of action arose, under Section 69 of the Consumer Protection Act 2019. A Commission can condone a delay only if you show sufficient cause and it records written reasons, so treat two years as a hard deadline.
Yes, if it bought the goods or service as a “consumer”, that is, not for resale or for a commercial purpose. Purchases made to earn a livelihood through self-employment are not treated as commercial. A pure business-to-business purchase for commercial use usually falls outside the definition.
e-Jagriti replaced and absorbed e-Daakhil on 1 January 2025, along with the older NCDRC, OCMS and CONFONET systems. There is now one portal, https://e-jagriti.gov.in, for District, State and National filings.
Log in to your e-Jagriti dashboard with the same account you filed from. It shows your case status, the next hearing date and any orders. The portal also supports virtual hearings, so many appearances can be done online.
The forum is fixed by what you paid as consideration, not what you claim. If you paid Rs 40,000 and claim Rs 5 lakh compensation, you still file at the District Commission, because Rs 40,000 is well under the Rs 50 lakh District ceiling.
Reviewed for accuracy by the RTI Wiki editorial desk, Dr. Shrawan Kumar Pathak and Kashvi Pathak.