Madras High Court Allows Testbook’s Civil Suit Against Google’s Billing Policies

The Madras High Court has rejected Google India’s plea to dismiss a civil suit filed by ed-tech firm Testbook challenging its billing policies under the Google Play Billing System and User Choice Billing model.

The Court held that disputes involving waiver, novation, and economic duress are contractual and fall within the civil court’s jurisdiction. The court ruled that the case is not barred by Section 61 of the Competition Act or the Payment and Settlement Systems Act and Order VII Rule 11 of the CPC.

Testbook also contests Google’s “take-it-or-leave-it” clause as violative of Sections 16, 27, and 62 of the Indian Contract Act.