Packaged telecom devices used for service delivery are not goods sold to consumers when ownership remains with the provider.

Packed telecom devices supplied by a service provider to subscribers were held outside the packaged commodities regime because the essential transaction was the rendering of telecommunication services, not a sale of goods. The subscriber agreement showed that the devices remained the provider's property and had to be returned on termination of service, so no transfer of property occurred. Mere packing at retail outlets, or the possibility of a replacement charge in some cases, did not convert the supply into a sale or make the Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976 and the Packaged Commodities Rules, 1977 applicable. On that basis, the proposed prosecution and notices were not maintainable and were quashed.

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Issues: Whether SIM cards and fixed wireless phone devices supplied by a telecom service provider to subscribers in packed form, without transfer of property and only for enabling telecommunication services, fall within the Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976 and the Standards of Weights and Measures (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 1977.

Analysis: The statutory scheme invoked by the authorities was directed at commodities packed for retail sale and at pre-packed commodities intended to be sold, delivered, offered, or stored for distribution in the ordinary course of trade. The Court examined the subscriber agreement and found that the devices remained the property of the service provider and were required to be returned on termination of service. The essential transaction was the rendering of telecommunication services, not a sale of the devices themselves. The fact that the devices were packed at retail outlets and that a replacement charge might be levied in a hypothetical case did not alter the legal character of the transaction, since there was no transfer of property and no sale by itself. On a prima facie view, the proposed prosecution rested on a mistaken assumption that mere packed form was sufficient to attract the Act and the Rules.

Conclusion: The proceedings under the Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976 and the Rules were not maintainable on the facts, and the petitioner succeeded.

Final Conclusion: The impugned notices and proposed criminal action were quashed, holding that the telecom devices were not packaged commodities liable to be proceeded against under the regulatory framework invoked.

Ratio Decidendi: The packaged commodities regime applies to commodities intended for sale as goods; where articles are supplied only incidentally for rendering a service, remain the supplier's property, and are not transferred to the consumer, the provisions are not attracted merely because the articles are packed and displayed for delivery.

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