On July 10, I visited an establishment operating under two names: Shri Dhivyam (Sweet & Snacks) on the ground floor and Ariya Bhavan on the first floor. Initially, I purchased a 1L Bisleri water bottle on the ground floor. They charged me ₹21, even though the MRP displayed was 20. When I questioned the price, they insisted on charging the higher amount. I paid via UPI (and have proof of this transaction), but they refused to provide a bill.

To gather further evidence and see if they would issue a bill under different circumstances, I dined in on the first floor at Ariya Bhavan. I ordered a coffee and another 1L Bisleri.

This time, they provided a bill that included both items, priced at 35 for the coffee and 20 for the water bottle, totaling ₹55. However, GST was applied to the combined amount, adding an additional ₹2.76 in taxes, which brought the final bill to ₹58.

Is this legal? I came across some articles mentioning that in 2017, a Supreme Court bench allowed hotels and restaurants to sell packaged water and food items above MRP under the reasoning that these include value-added services like ambience and cutlery. However, in this case:

• On the ground floor, no such value-added service was provided, As I simply bought the water bottle and walked out, so the additional charge of ₹1 doesn't make sense.

• On the first floor, even though a bill was provided, adding GST to the combined total doesn't seem correct.

Questions:

• Does the bill I received comply with the Supreme Court's 2017 ruling allowing restaurants to sell items over MRP, or does it constitute a violation?

• Is it valid to apply GST on the combined total of items (including the water bottle) as was done in my case?

• How should establishments properly reflect "over-MRP" pricing in their billing?

ps: I have the time and energy to pursue this matter further.