The correct answer is: Both (A) and (R) are correct, and (R) is the right explanation of (A).
Assertion (A) is correct because consumers are often at a disadvantage when it comes to dealing with businesses. Businesses have more information and resources than consumers, and they can use this to take advantage of consumers. For example, businesses may use deceptive advertising or hidden fees to trick consumers into buying products or services that they don’t need or want.
Reason (R) is also correct because perfectly competitive markets are rare, and consumer sovereignty is a myth. In a perfectly competitive market, there are many buyers and sellers, and all buyers and sellers have perfect information about the products and services being sold. In this type of market, consumers have the power to choose the products and services that they want, and businesses have to compete to attract consumers. However, in the real world, markets are often not perfectly competitive. There may be only a few buyers or sellers, or buyers and sellers may not have perfect information. In these types of markets, businesses have more power than consumers, and consumers may not be able to get the best deals.
Reason (R) is the right explanation of (A) because it explains why consumers need legal protection. In a perfectly competitive market, consumers would not need legal protection because they would have the power to choose the products and services that they want. However, in the real world, markets are often not perfectly competitive, and consumers may not have the power to protect themselves from businesses that take advantage of them. Legal protection can help to level the playing field between consumers and businesses, and it can help to ensure that consumers get a fair deal.