Modi Govt Privately Pulls Up Amazon For Selling Tricolor Doormats

March 31, 2017 11:21
Modi Govt Privately Pulls Up Amazon For Selling Tricolor Doormats

An unprecedented public and private offensive step, was taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Government, against the US-based Electronic commerce (e-commerce) company, Amazon.com

A document showed the website selling doormats resembling the country's flag.

Earlier in January, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, asked the e-retailer, to withdraw the products and tender an unconditional apology.

She further threatened that, no official of Amazon will be granted an Indian visa, and the ones issued earlier will also be rescinded, if the doormats were not removed from the Canadian Amazon web site.

A document shown by Reuters shows that the government went even further in private.

The Government has asked its U.S. and Canadian embassies to raise the matter “strongly” with the company’s senior leadership, as shown in the document.

India also further raised the matter to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

The Government further prompted a global audit, by the company.

The audit is to be done, to ensure that such products are not listed on any of the company’s, other websites around the world.

The E-retailer company, further did not give any comment, removed the products within 24 hours, and apologized to the government.

Amazon India, plans to invest more than $5 billion, and acquire competitor companies, Flipkart and Snapdeal.

The company aims to have a bigger share of the internet services market in the world's fastest growing major economy.

Outlining the steps, Amazon and India have taken since the incident, the document said, “Amazon has now made Indian laws that regulate the use of the national flag, as an integral part of the global compliance process.”

Mr. Narendra Modi, last year, has presented a global leadership award to Bezos at a U.S. - India Business Council summit in Washington.

The document said, that Amazon informed the Government, that it had strengthened its in-house compliance units.

These compliance units will in turn monitor products sold by third-party vendors on its websites.

“Amazon India has conveyed that it is fully committed to respecting Indian laws and customs,” said the document.

By Supraja

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