Cuttack, July 6: Orissa High Court today issued contempt notice to commissioner-cum-secretary of the state food supplies and consumer welfare department in connection with compliance of orders for constituting and functioning of the State Consumer Protection Council and the District Consumer Protection Councils.

The division bench of Justice B.P. Das and Justice S.K. Mishra issued the notice on a contempt petition filed by the Orissa Consumers Association. Commissioner-cum-secretary Madhusudan Padhi is expected to showcause by July 27 as to why contempt proceedings should not be started against him for not fully implementing the October 27, 2008 order.

On October 27, 2008, the high court directed the Orissa government for implementing section 7 and 8 (a) of the Consumer Protection (CP) Act that provided for establishment of the State Consumer Protection Council and the District Consumer Protection Councils.

The court had set a six month deadline for framing of the rules and enforcement of the Act to establish the State Consumer Protection Council and the District Consumer Protection Councils and make them functional.

The CP Act provided for establishment of the State Consumer Protection Council with the minister in-charge of consumer affairs in Orissa as chairman and collectors as chairman of the District Consumer Protection Councils.

The association had initially filed a petition seeking judicial intervention for it.

Incidentally, this is the second time the high court has issued contempt notice in connection with the order. The first contempt notice was issued on June 28, 2010.

The contempt proceedings were, however, dropped after erstwhile civil supplies and consumer welfare secretary A.K.K. Meena had filed an affidavit on December 13, 2010 and stated that the State Consumer Protection Council had been constituted.

Moreover, the District Consumer Protection Councils had been constituted in Rayagada, Angul, Dhenkanal and Balangir.