Severe psychological coercion, high-pressure brainwashing, and predatory multi-billing ("drip pricing") by Shine.com

[ankitarora]

Company Name

HT Media Limited (Shine.com)

Website Name

shine.com

Customer Care Number

0120-4710555

Loss Amount

152845

Ratings

1.00 star(s)

Opposite Party Address

HT Media Limited, 18-20, Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi - 110001

Description of Event:On June 22, 2026, I was contacted by representatives from Shine.com under the pretext of standard job placement assistance. What followed was a highly calculated, aggressive, and relentless multi-hour telephonic trap designed to break down my mental defenses. Over a continuous sequence of high-pressure calls on a single day, their agents systematically brainwashed, coerced, and manipulated me into purchasing an endless chain of overlapping packages.

The sales agents used intense fear tactics and severe psychological pressure, convincing me that my profile was useless and that I would lose my career prospects unless I paid immediate fees. The moment a transaction went through, the agent immediately shifted the goalposts, stating that the money already paid would be entirely forfeited or blocked unless I paid for the "next mandatory compliance phase." I was kept in a state of continuous cognitive overload and acute panic. Every time I tried to stop, they introduced new, undisclosed financial demands, trapping me in a high-pressure loop that rapidly piled up 9 separate transactions in a single day, escalating to a massive financial liability of ₹1,52,845.39. All 9 transactions were systematically routed consecutively through the Razorpay payment gateway directly to a single entity: HT Media Limited.

Severe Mental Agony and Psychological Impact: The sheer weight of this financial entrapment and aggressive manipulation completely broke me down. The emotional distress was so severe that I was left completely traumatized, unable to sleep, and brought to tears by the overwhelming panic of being pushed into endless financial demands. The psychological coercion employed by their agents was so extreme that it pushed me to a state of absolute despair, causing acute panic attacks and severely impacting my mental health and emotional safety.

Discovery and Decisive Cancellation: After a night of severe distress, I woke up at 5:30 AM on June 23, 2026, fully realizing the predatory and deceptive nature of this trap. I immediately contacted my banks to dispute the charges and halt further processing. However, because the merchant aggressively pressured me into disclosing OTPs during the high-pressure sales calls, the banking systems were unable to stop the immediate settlement of the funds.

Having exhausted all urgent banking remedies, I locked my accounts and issued a comprehensive, formal contract cancellation and full refund demand via email to compliance@shine.com and contactus@shine.com at 8:47 AM. This notice was delivered at the very start of the business morning, prior to the deployment of any substantive, human-led services.

Despite my explicit written revocation of consent, their agents continued their harassment, launching a barrage of 6 intimidation phone calls within a 12-minute window between 11:15 AM and 11:27 AM today to try and force me back into the loop. Furthermore, their automated backend completely ignored my legal notice, willfully pushing a "service activated" email to my inbox at 12:26 PM. I have left all subsequent corporate emails completely unopened to ensure zero utilization of their platform.

Relief Sought:I have been subjected to an unconscionable contract through extreme verbal, emotional, and psychological coercion. I pray to the Honorable Forum for:

1. A direct order compelling HT Media Limited (Shine.com) to issue a complete refund of the entire coerced sum of ₹1,52,845.39 to my source accounts.
2. Immediate termination and absolute scrubbing of all automated profiles, course credentials, or accounts created under my name during this deceptive loop.
3. Strict punitive damages and compensation for the severe mental harassment, acute emotional agony, and psychological trauma intentionally inflicted upon me by the merchant's predatory tactics.

 

[ankitarora]

Edit: This was all done on 22nd June. Shine.com sent a message at 1:27 AM on 23rd June that "Your Applications Will Be Highlighted"
After that I wrote this post, and then sent an email as a Legal Notice to these parties regarding ₹1,48,218 being extracted from me using intimidation and coercion and upselling tactics:

1. compliance@shine.com
2. contactus@shine.com

While CCing it to:
1. investor@hindustantimes.com
2. complianceofficer@htmedia.in
3. nationalconsumerhelpline@gmail.com

And then they told me someone will call me regarding the same from the compliance department. I initially agreed for 11:30 and then sent a message that from now on there will be no verbal communication and from now on all contact shall strictly be in writing via email for official record-keeping.
Then they tried to contact me around 11:15 and when I didn't pick the call, they contacted me again and again (about 6 times in 15 minutes out of which 3 were in the span of less than 120 seconds) but not after 11:30, and I had sent an addendum on the email stating that including the taxes and all which were charged and also that there were extra charges for converting it to EMI as well and it was about ₹1,52,845.39 (inclusive of all applicable GST and transaction taxes). The addendum email was sent on 23rd June 12:21PM. Then I started receiving messages from 23 June at 1:25PM that the refund has been initiated and when I calculated the amounts it's ₹1,48,218 and not ₹1,52,845.39 (4,627.39 in charges), and I have been credited 58,663.02 until now (this amount too should have been ₹60,132.25 instead)

 

[ankitarora]

The merchant (HT Media Ltd / Shine.com) has reached out under a new Incident ID (VJMA-816329) attempting to force a goodwill settlement clause of ₹1,49,438.16. I have officially rejected this case closure for the following reasons:
- Shortchanged Balance: Their official ledger proves they have deliberately skimmed and withheld ₹3,407.23 from the actual ₹1,52,845.39 principal amount originally debited on June 22.
- Uncleared Bank Accounts: Funds have failed to clear on two of my credit cards, leaving me with active bank liabilities of ₹61,659.21 tied up in forced, unauthorized long-term EMI tenors.
- Evasion of Written Records: They are aggressively attempting to schedule verbal phone calls to avoid a transparent paper trail, which I have firmly declined.
- Compensation for Harassment: I have explicitly demanded ₹50,000 in damages for the severe emotional distress, panic attacks, and continuous harassment inflicted by their predatory tactics over the past 6 days.

I am keeping all updates strictly in writing. I request the legal advisors here to guide me on approaching the Consumer Court, as the merchant refuses to restore the full principal amount or cancel the predatory EMI structures.

 

[ankitarora]

URGENT HELP NEEDED: Merchant Skimmed Funds & RBL Bank Is Forcing 15% Interest EMIs For Canceled Service!​

I am posting this out of absolute despair. This systemic fraud by the merchant and the total failure of RBL Bank has triggered severe panic attacks, anxiety, and physical hand tremors over the past two weeks. I am begging the legal experts on this forum for urgent guidance because I am trapped in a financial nightmare.

The Merchant Fraud (HT Media Ltd / Shine.com):They unilaterally closed my complaint under Incident ID: VJMA-816329, claiming a full resolution. In reality, they shortchanged my principal refund by withholding exactly ₹3,407.47 across 10 split transactions under the guise of gateway fees.

The RBL Bank Escalation Failure:Worse, the merchant's deceptive transaction splitting has trapped my credit card into unauthorized 9-month and 18-month EMI tenors. RBL Bank just sent me the active breakdown, proving they are actively charging me 15% interest and have billed me ₹824 in upfront processing fees for a completely canceled service!

When I bypassed front-line support and escalated this nightmare directly to the Principal Nodal Officer tonight, their customer service team intercepted it an hour later, telling me to "contact the merchant directly."

The merchant has abandoned resolution, and the bank is actively endorsing this unfair trade practice by forcing me to pay interest out of pocket. Please, how do I legally compel RBL Bank to freeze these fraudulent EMIs while a chargeback is investigated? I desperately need your help to save my financial records and mental peace.

 

[ankitarora]

The Fraud & Deadlock: Despite extensive documentation and a 2.5-week waiting period, both Shine.com and RBL Bank have refused to resolve the unauthorized split-billing dispute. RBL stubbornly maintains they will not cancel the EMIs until the merchant processes the complete refund.
The Contrast: Axis Bank reviewed the exact same timeline and evidence, instantly recognized the merchant's predatory behavior, cancelled their portion of the EMIs, and reversed the transaction fees regarding the EMIs.
The Current Burden: Because of RBL's rigid stance, I am being forced to carry an unfair 60,000 INR liability for an unrendered, aggressively cancelled service.
Current Action: My National Consumer Helpline (NCH) docket remains actively "In Process." I am posting this to highlight the systemic failure of RBL Bank's compliance framework compared to Axis Bank's swift intervention.

 

[ankitarora]

• Evidence Type: Email from RBL Bank PNO Desk (Reference No: 121643477) received on July 14, 2026.
• Key Issue: RBL Bank is actively refusing to cancel or pre-close the unauthorized, fraudulent EMI plan that they forced onto my credit card following a merchant fraud incident on June 22, 2026.
• Unfair Terms: As shown in the screenshot, the bank is explicitly demanding that I - the victim of the fraud - pay out-of-pocket "EMI pre-closure charges" along with the outstanding fraudulent balance simply to stop the unfair interest-bearing EMI plan.
• Contradiction: This demand stands despite the bank's latest statement showing a total minimum due of ₹0.00 and a negative credit balance due to active dispute reversals. The bank is penalizing the consumer for their own systemic billing mismatch.

 

[ankitarora]

Status Update - August 1, 2026

1. RBL Bank's Stand: RBL Bank’s PNO Desk submitted a response to the RBI Ombudsman admitting that merchant refunds of ₹53,471.02 were received on June 23, 2026, prior to converting the transactions into EMIs on June 24, 2026. However, they refuse to cancel the EMIs citing internal "partial/non-matching refund" policies.
2. Objection Filed with RBI: I have submitted a formal counter-objection to the RBI Ombudsman (crpc@rbi.org.in) under a legal Complaint.
3. Key Argument: Levying processing fees and EMI interest on funds held prior to conversion constitutes an unfair trade practice and service deficiency.

Awaiting final determination from the RBI Ombudsman and updates on an NCH Docket.

 

[ankitarora]

This is what they had replied on my grievance on consumerhelpline.gov.in
And yet, I haven't been refunded the full amount, and the EMIs are still on.

 

[ankitarora]

Losing all hope right now. Even RBI claims that RBL Bank is right and RBL is asking for more charges to close the EMIs, and at one time they're saying the EMIs are not related to the merchant and at some places they themselves are saying that the merchant hasn't refunded the full amount and so, they can't close the EMIs. And Shine.com is not agreeing to refund the processing and gateway charges.

 

[TeamMember]

Hello @ankitarora

Furthermore, their automated backend completely ignored my legal notice

As you have already sent a legal notice to the Shine.Com, but still not received any refund and compensation, in this situation you need to file a case against them.

You have all the evidence that support your case and to file a case you need to visit

e-jagriti Platform: Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution, Government of India

Department of Consumer Affairs - Government of India Official Website Find information, tutorials, and resources related to consumer rights and public distribution. Stay informed and empowered.

e-jagriti.gov.in

Submit all the relevant documents online.

Feel free to Contact us, for any help in drafting and filing case in the Consumer Forum

Thanks

 

[ankitarora]

I

Hello @ankitarora



As you have already sent a legal notice to the Shine.Com, but still not received any refund and compensation, in this situation you need to file a case against them.

You have all the evidence that support your case and to file a case you need to visit

e-jagriti Platform: Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution, Government of India

Department of Consumer Affairs - Government of India Official Website Find information, tutorials, and resources related to consumer rights and public distribution. Stay informed and empowered.

e-jagriti.gov.in

Submit all the relevant documents online.

Feel free to Contact us, for any help in drafting and filing case in the Consumer Forum

Thanks

I have filed a case on e-Jagriti portal as well to no avail. And Shine.com and RBL are playing blame games by trying to put the blame on the other party. Shine.com is saying that they have refunded the whole amount, and RBL is saying that Shine.com has refunded the amount but not the processing and payment gateway (Razorpay) charges.
RBL sent me this email 6 days ago:
"
Dear Mr. Arora,

Greetings for the day!

This is in regard to your concern related to RBL Bank Credit Card ending with xx57.
We would like to inform you that the transactions you made on 22-June-2026 were of INR 14542.26, INR 14928.49 & INR 25451.50 which you opted for EMI conversion.
Later, 23-June-2026, you had received the refund of INR 14534.02, INR 14158 & INR 24779 which were not the actual amount of the transactions. We are attaching the statement for your reference.
In addition, we would like to inform you that the transaction and refund from merchant are between customer and merchant whereas EMI conversion is not related to merchant.

Hence, the partial refund you received from the merchant is still reflecting as credit balance in your credit card account.
In case you want to pre-close the EMI’s, the same would levy the pre-closure charges of 3% and 18% GST on the pre-closure charges.
If you wish to pre-close the EMIs, kindly write back to us and we will let you know the charges to pre-close.
Kindly note that the credit balance available in your account will keeps on getting adjusted with the statement of every month."

Then I replied this 4 days ago:
"
Dear Mr. Himanshu Gupta,

Senior Management Escalation Desk, RBL Bank Ltd,

I refer to your email dated 05 September 2026 (Ref: 124508125).

Your demand for a 3% pre-closure charge plus 18% GST to terminate the
three disputed EMI schedules is rejected entirely. Your communication
provides documented evidence of bad-faith debt harvesting and unfair
trade practices under Section 2(47) of the Consumer Protection Act,
2019:

Admission of Unlawful Debt Harvesting: Your written statement that the
credit balance "will keeps on getting adjusted with the statement of
every month" confirms on record that RBL Bank is deliberately
retaining an unutilized credit surplus (-₹41,916.67 in July,
-₹36,732.00 currently) to siphon ₹5,070.34 per month at 15.00% p.a.
interest until 2028, rather than extinguishing a voided facility.

Extortionate Pre-Closure Charges: Demanding a 3% penalty to stop
billing commercial loans that RBL Bank created on 24 June 2026, after
receiving ₹53,471.02 from the merchant on 23 June 2026, is legally and
contractually baseless. Ancillary loan obligations cannot survive when
the underlying commercial transactions were cancelled and refunded
within 24 hours.

Contradiction of Regulatory Filings: In RBL Bank’s formal defense
submitted to the RBI Banking Ombudsman (Ref: N202627016012295), the
bank justified non-cancellation by claiming these were strictly
"Merchant EMIs" bound by merchant-refund rules. Your present claim
that "EMI conversion is not related to merchant" directly contradicts
your regulatory defense to avoid accountability.

Standard Banking Benchmark (Axis Bank): For parallel debits executed
during the identical merchant event (Raz*HT MEDIA LIMITED), Axis Bank
cancelled the EMIs within 4 business days, reversed 100% of processing
charges and GST, and restored the card balance without levying any
foreclosure penalties.

Notice of Formal Regulatory Filing:

A formal statutory petition under Sections 10 and 21 of the Consumer
Protection Act, 2019 has been served today to the Central Consumer
Protection Authority (CCPA) and the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, with
copies marked to executive management and the RBI Ombudsman. Your
email has been entered into the evidentiary docket as Exhibit 1C.

Final Terms for Resolution:
- Execute an immediate, zero-cost manual foreclosure of all three
active EMI schedules on card ending 6128.
- Offset the unbilled principal entirely against the sitting credit
surplus, without levying any 3% pre-closure fee or GST.
- Reverse the ₹824.00 processing fees and all finance/interest charges
debited across July, August, and upcoming September cycles.
- Issue an updated account statement and formal zero-dues confirmation.

Revert only to confirm complete, unconditional compliance with these terms."

Then they replied:
"
Dear Mr. Arora,
Greetings for the day.

We refer to your email and have carefully noted the concerns raised by you. After reviewing the account details, we would like to reiterate our position as communicated earlier.
The transactions made by you on 22-June-2026 were successfully converted into EMI plans on your credit card account post your confirmation. Subsequently, refunds which were received from the merchant and credited to your card account were not of the same account.
We wish to clarify that merchant refunds and EMI conversions are two separate and independent processes. Once an EMI conversion request has been successfully processed, the EMI plan remains active unless foreclosed in accordance with the applicable terms and conditions. Receipt of a refund from the merchant does not automatically cancel, reverse, or foreclose the EMI booked on the credit card account.
As per the standard billing process, this credit balance is utilized to offset future statement dues, including applicable EMI instalments, interest, fees, and other charges, as and when they become due. Accordingly, the presence of a credit balance does not result in the automatic adjustment of the entire outstanding EMI principal nor does it trigger closure of the active EMI plans.
With regard to your request for closure of the EMI plans without charges, we regret to inform you that the same is not feasible. As per the applicable terms and conditions of the EMI facility, foreclosure of active EMI plans attracts pre-closure charges of 3% on the outstanding principal amount along with applicable GST. Consequently, we are unable to accede to your request for foreclosure without applicable charges or for reversal of such charges.
In view of the above, our previous communication remains unchanged. Should you wish to proceed with foreclosure of the EMI plans as per the applicable terms, please write back to us and we will share the applicable foreclosure amount.
We trust the above clarifies the matter."

 

[ankitarora]

I

I have filed a case on e-Jagriti portal as well to no avail. And Shine.com and RBL are playing blame games by trying to put the blame on the other party. Shine.com is saying that they have refunded the whole amount, and RBL is saying that Shine.com has refunded the amount but not the processing and payment gateway (Razorpay) charges.
RBL sent me this email 6 days ago:
"
Dear Mr. Arora,

Greetings for the day!

This is in regard to your concern related to RBL Bank Credit Card ending with xx57.
We would like to inform you that the transactions you made on 22-June-2026 were of INR 14542.26, INR 14928.49 & INR 25451.50 which you opted for EMI conversion.
Later, 23-June-2026, you had received the refund of INR 14534.02, INR 14158 & INR 24779 which were not the actual amount of the transactions. We are attaching the statement for your reference.
In addition, we would like to inform you that the transaction and refund from merchant are between customer and merchant whereas EMI conversion is not related to merchant.

Hence, the partial refund you received from the merchant is still reflecting as credit balance in your credit card account.
In case you want to pre-close the EMI’s, the same would levy the pre-closure charges of 3% and 18% GST on the pre-closure charges.
If you wish to pre-close the EMIs, kindly write back to us and we will let you know the charges to pre-close.
Kindly note that the credit balance available in your account will keeps on getting adjusted with the statement of every month."

Then I replied this 4 days ago:
"
Dear Mr. Himanshu Gupta,

Senior Management Escalation Desk, RBL Bank Ltd,

I refer to your email dated 05 September 2026 (Ref: 124508125).

Your demand for a 3% pre-closure charge plus 18% GST to terminate the
three disputed EMI schedules is rejected entirely. Your communication
provides documented evidence of bad-faith debt harvesting and unfair
trade practices under Section 2(47) of the Consumer Protection Act,
2019:

Admission of Unlawful Debt Harvesting: Your written statement that the
credit balance "will keeps on getting adjusted with the statement of
every month" confirms on record that RBL Bank is deliberately
retaining an unutilized credit surplus (-₹41,916.67 in July,
-₹36,732.00 currently) to siphon ₹5,070.34 per month at 15.00% p.a.
interest until 2028, rather than extinguishing a voided facility.

Extortionate Pre-Closure Charges: Demanding a 3% penalty to stop
billing commercial loans that RBL Bank created on 24 June 2026, after
receiving ₹53,471.02 from the merchant on 23 June 2026, is legally and
contractually baseless. Ancillary loan obligations cannot survive when
the underlying commercial transactions were cancelled and refunded
within 24 hours.

Contradiction of Regulatory Filings: In RBL Bank’s formal defense
submitted to the RBI Banking Ombudsman (Ref: N202627016012295), the
bank justified non-cancellation by claiming these were strictly
"Merchant EMIs" bound by merchant-refund rules. Your present claim
that "EMI conversion is not related to merchant" directly contradicts
your regulatory defense to avoid accountability.

Standard Banking Benchmark (Axis Bank): For parallel debits executed
during the identical merchant event (Raz*HT MEDIA LIMITED), Axis Bank
cancelled the EMIs within 4 business days, reversed 100% of processing
charges and GST, and restored the card balance without levying any
foreclosure penalties.

Notice of Formal Regulatory Filing:

A formal statutory petition under Sections 10 and 21 of the Consumer
Protection Act, 2019 has been served today to the Central Consumer
Protection Authority (CCPA) and the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, with
copies marked to executive management and the RBI Ombudsman. Your
email has been entered into the evidentiary docket as Exhibit 1C.

Final Terms for Resolution:
- Execute an immediate, zero-cost manual foreclosure of all three
active EMI schedules on card ending 6128.
- Offset the unbilled principal entirely against the sitting credit
surplus, without levying any 3% pre-closure fee or GST.
- Reverse the ₹824.00 processing fees and all finance/interest charges
debited across July, August, and upcoming September cycles.
- Issue an updated account statement and formal zero-dues confirmation.

Revert only to confirm complete, unconditional compliance with these terms."

Then they replied:
"
Dear Mr. Arora,
Greetings for the day.

We refer to your email and have carefully noted the concerns raised by you. After reviewing the account details, we would like to reiterate our position as communicated earlier.
The transactions made by you on 22-June-2026 were successfully converted into EMI plans on your credit card account post your confirmation. Subsequently, refunds which were received from the merchant and credited to your card account were not of the same account.
We wish to clarify that merchant refunds and EMI conversions are two separate and independent processes. Once an EMI conversion request has been successfully processed, the EMI plan remains active unless foreclosed in accordance with the applicable terms and conditions. Receipt of a refund from the merchant does not automatically cancel, reverse, or foreclose the EMI booked on the credit card account.
As per the standard billing process, this credit balance is utilized to offset future statement dues, including applicable EMI instalments, interest, fees, and other charges, as and when they become due. Accordingly, the presence of a credit balance does not result in the automatic adjustment of the entire outstanding EMI principal nor does it trigger closure of the active EMI plans.
With regard to your request for closure of the EMI plans without charges, we regret to inform you that the same is not feasible. As per the applicable terms and conditions of the EMI facility, foreclosure of active EMI plans attracts pre-closure charges of 3% on the outstanding principal amount along with applicable GST. Consequently, we are unable to accede to your request for foreclosure without applicable charges or for reversal of such charges.
In view of the above, our previous communication remains unchanged. Should you wish to proceed with foreclosure of the EMI plans as per the applicable terms, please write back to us and we will share the applicable foreclosure amount.
We trust the above clarifies the matter."

And from Shine.com this was the last proper email on 21st Aug:
"
Dear Mr. Arora,

Greetings from Shine.com
We confirm that Shine.com has processed a full refund of ₹1,49,438.16, which constitutes the exact amount the company received for your purchase, as a goodwill gesture.
Please note that any processing fees, interest, or ancillary charges levied as a result of converting this purchase into an EMI transaction were billed directly by your card-issuing bank, which is the sole beneficiary of those charges.

As the company never received or retained any such excess funds, Shine.com holds no liability to refund bank-levied charges. Consequently, the company has completely discharged its obligations, and no further claims shall lie against Shine.com in this matter.

For clarification regarding the specific transaction or beneficiary of the claimed amount of ₹3,407.23, please coordinate directly with your bank or card issuer.

Regards
Compliance Team "

After this on the 5th and 7th Sept this is what I received from them:
"
Hello Ankit Arora,

We have resolved your incident. Below are details for your request.

Incident Id: S-1126067
Subject: Formal CCPA Petition under Sec 10 & 21 (CPA 2019): Predatory Upsell Scam, Dark Patterns & Involuntary 15% Loan Trap | HT Media Ltd (Shine.com) &
Department: Compliance
Incident type: Select
Status: Closed
Please give us your feedback on how was your overall experience with our team while resolving your issue."

I have filed a complaint against RBL Bank as well as when I contacted Axis Bank, they understood my situation and cancelled the EMIs on the spot and even refunded the payment gateway and processing charges. And if Axis can do, so can RBL, but I believe they are witholding the charges to extract the interest from me.

 

[ankitarora]

And from Shine.com this was the last proper email on 21st Aug:
"
Dear Mr. Arora,

Greetings from Shine.com
We confirm that Shine.com has processed a full refund of ₹1,49,438.16, which constitutes the exact amount the company received for your purchase, as a goodwill gesture.
Please note that any processing fees, interest, or ancillary charges levied as a result of converting this purchase into an EMI transaction were billed directly by your card-issuing bank, which is the sole beneficiary of those charges.

As the company never received or retained any such excess funds, Shine.com holds no liability to refund bank-levied charges. Consequently, the company has completely discharged its obligations, and no further claims shall lie against Shine.com in this matter.

For clarification regarding the specific transaction or beneficiary of the claimed amount of ₹3,407.23, please coordinate directly with your bank or card issuer.

Regards
Compliance Team "

After this on the 5th and 7th Sept this is what I received from them:
"
Hello Ankit Arora,

We have resolved your incident. Below are details for your request.

Incident Id: S-1126067
Subject: Formal CCPA Petition under Sec 10 & 21 (CPA 2019): Predatory Upsell Scam, Dark Patterns & Involuntary 15% Loan Trap | HT Media Ltd (Shine.com) &
Department: Compliance
Incident type: Select
Status: Closed
Please give us your feedback on how was your overall experience with our team while resolving your issue."

I have filed a complaint against RBL Bank as well as when I contacted Axis Bank, they understood my situation and cancelled the EMIs on the spot and even refunded the payment gateway and processing charges. And if Axis can do, so can RBL, but I believe they are witholding the charges to extract the interest from me.

And this was my last email to the Cards Escalation Desk and the RBL Bank PNO:
"

Dear Mr. Gupta,



I acknowledge receipt of your email dated 07 September 2026 under Reference 124509174.



Your written position - asserting that the merchant refund and the EMI conversion are "two separate and independent processes" and that RBL Bank will intentionally hold this credit balance to siphon monthly installments, 15.00% p.a. interest, and charges rather than cancel the voided loan - has been formally placed on record before the Reserve Bank of India Integrated Ombudsman under active Complaint No. N202627016017419



For your reference and regulatory record:



Industry Standard Compliance: On the exact same set of voided transactions and subsequent merchant refunds arising from this matter, peer scheduled commercial banks (including Axis Bank) immediately cancelled the post-purchase EMI plans at zero cost upon receipt of the refund.

Manufactured Debt & Coercive Penalties: The underlying commercial transaction ceased to exist once refunded. RBL Bank is deliberately unlinking the refund from the converted facility purely to harvest unaccrued interest from my credit balance, while demanding an unlawful 3% foreclosure penalty plus GST to exit an unbacked loan.

Regulatory Contradiction: Your written admission that this EMI is purely an internal bank facility directly refutes RBL Bank's prior representations before the Ombudsman claiming restriction under merchant EMI rules.

RBL Bank has suffered zero credit exposure. Holding a cardholder's refunded capital hostage to generate interest and fee income constitutes an unfair trade practice under the RBI Master Direction on Credit Card Operations.



I reiterate my formal demand for:



Complete, manual zero-cost foreclosure of all three disputed EMI schedules with zero pre-closure penalty and zero GST.

100% reversal of all processing fees (₹824), finance charges, and interest debited across July, August, and September cycles.

Immediate reconciliation and restoration of the true credit balance.

Any further billing of finance charges or adverse credit bureau reporting during this pendency will be pursued for statutory damages before the Ombudsman.



Sincerely,

Ankit Arora"


Now just waiting for a reply, and losing hope with each reply.

 

[TeamMember]

Hello,

I have reviewed the details. Please correct me if I have misunderstood or stated anything incorrectly.

Point 1: You purchased services from Shine.com and paid the service charges through your RBL Credit Card.

Point 2: RBL applied processing charges when the transaction was converted into EMI.

Point 3: Subsequently, Shine.com failed to provide you with the promised services.

Point 4: Shine.com refunded the amount to the original payment source.

Point 5: However, RBL is now charging foreclosure charges and other related charges in connection with the EMI.

Based on the complete sequence of events, it appears that RBL has acted in accordance with the transaction/EMI terms on its part. Therefore, you should raise a claim against Shine.com for the foreclosure charges and other related charges, along with appropriate compensation and costs, as these charges have arisen due to Shine.com's failure to provide the promised services.

Please confirm whether the above understanding is correct.

Thanks.