Bangladesh DNCRP Fines 9,500 Businesses For Undelivered Goods And Services In 20 Months

Dhaka, September 25, 2026 — The Directorate of National Consumers' Right Protection (DNCRP) has fined more than 9,500 business establishments over the past 20 months for failing to deliver promised goods or services to customers. The figures were disclosed at a workshop on the Consumer Rights Protection Act, 2009, for journalists at the DNCRP conference room in Karwan Bazar, Dhaka.

⚖ Tahmina Begum, assistant director of the training section of the DNCRP, presented the data — revealing the scale of consumer protection enforcement in Bangladesh.

📊 DNCRP Enforcement Statistics

Top Violation Categories (Past 20 Months)

• ⚠ 9,500+ establishments fined for failing to deliver promised goods/services
• ⚠ 8,500+ establishments fined for failing to display price lists
• ⚠ 8,400+ establishments fined for selling expired goods and medicines
• ⚠ 8,300+ establishments fined for manufacturing through illegal processes
• ⚠ 7,200+ establishments fined for failing to use proper packaging
• ⚠ 3,100+ establishments fined for selling goods above fixed prices
• ⚠ 1,800+ establishments fined for mixing banned substances into food items

📊 Annual Enforcement Trends

Fiscal Year 2023-24

• 📋 Establishments fined: 24,223
• 📋 Market drives conducted: 11,148
• 📋 Penalties collected: Tk 19.80 crore

Fiscal Year 2024-25

• 📋 Establishments fined: 26,297
• 📋 Market drives conducted: 12,882
• 📋 Penalties collected: Tk 18.81 crore

Fiscal Year 2025-26

• 📋 Establishments fined: 27,243
• 📋 Market drives conducted: 14,279
• 📋 Penalties collected: Tk 24.27 crore

Fiscal Year 2026-27 (Through August 31, 2026)

• 📋 Establishments fined: 3,629
• 📋 Market drives conducted: 4,092

📈 Enforcement Trends Analysis

The data reveals several important trends:

• 📈 Increasing enforcement intensity — from 11,148 drives in FY24 to 14,279 drives in FY26.
• 📈 Rising number of establishments fined — from 24,223 in FY24 to 27,243 in FY26.
• 📈 Higher penalty collections — Tk 24.27 crore in FY26, up from Tk 19.80 crore in FY24.
• 📈 Pace in FY27 — with 4,092 drives already conducted by August 31, suggesting continued enforcement intensity.

🏛 DNCRP: Mandate And Authority

The Directorate of National Consumers' Right Protection (DNCRP) is the government agency responsible for enforcing consumer protection laws in Bangladesh. Key facts:

• 🏛 Legal basis: Consumer Rights Protection Act, 2009.
• 🏛 Parent ministry: Ministry of Commerce.
• 🏛 Director General: Md Jahirul Islam.
• 🏛 Mandate: protect consumer rights, prevent unfair trade practices, and enforce product quality and pricing standards.
• 🏛 Enforcement powers: conduct market drives, fine violators, file cases, and seize non-compliant products.

📋 Common Consumer Protection Violations In Bangladesh

The DNCRP data highlights the most common consumer protection violations in Bangladesh:

• ⚠ Undelivered goods/services — particularly in e-commerce, real estate, and service contracts.
• ⚠ Failure to display price lists — preventing consumers from comparing prices.
• ⚠ Selling expired goods — particularly in food, medicine, and consumer products.
• ⚠ Illegal manufacturing — operating without proper licenses or quality controls.
• ⚠ Improper packaging — failing to meet labelling and packaging standards.
• ⚠ Price gouging — selling above government-fixed maximum retail prices.
• ⚠ Adulteration — mixing banned or harmful substances into food items.

💬 DNCRP Director General's Statement

Md Jahirul Islam, director general of the DNCRP, said although online fraud has been on the rise, the existing [regulatory framework has limitations in addressing it effectively].

The director general's acknowledgement of online fraud as a growing challenge reflects the rapid expansion of Bangladesh's e-commerce sector — which has created new consumer protection risks that the existing regulatory framework was not designed to address.

🌐 The Online Fraud Challenge

Bangladesh's e-commerce sector has grown rapidly in recent years — creating new consumer protection challenges:

• 🌐 F-commerce (Facebook commerce) — thousands of small businesses selling through Facebook pages, with limited accountability.
• 🌐 E-commerce platforms — with issues around product quality, delivery, and refund policies.
• 🌐 Online scams — including fake products, advance-fee fraud, and non-delivery scams.
• 🌐 Digital payment fraud — including unauthorised transactions and data breaches.
• 🌐 Misleading advertisements — particularly on social media platforms.

The DNCRP's existing enforcement tools — primarily designed for physical market inspections — are not well-suited to addressing online fraud, which requires digital investigation capabilities and cooperation with platform operators.

🏛 The Consumer Rights Protection Act, 2009

The Consumer Rights Protection Act, 2009 is the primary legislation governing consumer protection in Bangladesh. Key provisions include:

• 📜 Right to safety — protection from hazardous goods and services.
• 📜 Right to information — access to accurate product information.
• 📜 Right to choose — freedom to select from competitive products.
• 📜 Right to redress — access to complaint resolution mechanisms.
• 📜 Penalty provisions — fines and imprisonment for violations.

However, the Act predates the e-commerce boom — and does not adequately address online consumer protection issues. The government has been considering amendments to modernise the framework.

💼 Wider Implications For Bangladesh's Consumer Economy

The DNCRP enforcement data has several implications for Bangladesh's consumer economy:

• 🛍 Consumer awareness — the enforcement data suggests growing consumer awareness of rights and willingness to file complaints.
• 🛍 Business compliance — businesses are increasingly being held accountable for consumer protection violations.
• 🛍 Market discipline — the fines create a deterrent effect that should improve overall market behaviour.
• 🛍 Revenue generation — the penalty collections contribute to government revenue.
• 🛍 Regulatory gap for online fraud — the DNCRP's acknowledged limitation in addressing online fraud suggests the need for regulatory reform.

📜 Looking Ahead

For Bangladesh's consumer protection landscape, the DNCRP enforcement data tells a story of both progress and remaining challenges:

• ✅ Progress — increasing enforcement intensity, rising penalty collections, and growing consumer awareness.
• ⚠ Challenges — particularly in addressing online fraud, which requires different enforcement tools and capabilities.
• 📝 Reform needs — updating the Consumer Rights Protection Act to address digital economy challenges.
• 📝 Capacity building — strengthening DNCRP's digital investigation capabilities.
• 📝 Inter-agency coordination — between DNCRP, BTRC (telecom regulator), and other agencies for online fraud cases.

The coming fiscal year will reveal whether the DNCRP can sustain its enforcement momentum — and whether the government will address the regulatory gaps that allow online fraud to proliferate. For Bangladesh's consumers, the enforcement data provides reassurance that their rights are being protected — while also highlighting the work that remains to be done.