Anti-profiteering notice served on HUL; FMCG, IT firms may move HC

The notice to HUL is the DGS's sixth; it has already issued notices to other firms

The largest consumer goods company in the country, Hindustan Unilever (HUL), was on Tuesday slapped with a notice by the government’s anti-profiteering body, set up to monitor whether or not firms were passing on benefits of the goods and services tax (GST) to consumers.

While the contents of the notice, issued by the Directorate General of Safeguards (DGS), could not be immediately ascertained, the development comes as companies in fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) and information technology (IT) sectors propose to move the high courts in Delhi and Mumbai seeking more clarity on the anti-profiteering clause under the GST.

The DGS is the