Question : COMPLAINT AGAINST ONLINE RETAILERS

(a) whether any complaint/ representation has been received by the Government/ Competition Commission of India (CCI) for alleged unfair business practices by various online e-commerce retailers in the country recently and if so, the details thereof;

(b) whether the Government/CCI has conducted/ proposes to conduct any investigation /enquiry in this regard and if so, the details along with the outcome thereof;

(c) whether the Government also proposes to evaluate the business model and trade practices of e-commerce companies and if so, the details thereof;

(d) whether the Government has formulated/ proposes to formulate a separate policy/ guidelines for monitoring or regulating e-commerce trade and incorporate the said guidelines in the National Competition Policy, in order to bring uniformity in retail and e-business; and

(e) if so, the details thereof and steps being taken by the Government in this direction?

THE MINISTER OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS (SHRI ARUN JAITLEY)

(a) & (b) Yes, Madam. The matter regarding alleged anti-competitive conduct of online retailers, Flipkart India Pvt Ltd, Jasper InfotechPvt Ltd, Xerion Retails Pvt. Ltd., Amazon Seller Services Pvt Ltd., Vector e-commerce Pvt Ltd., etc is under consideration of the Competition Commission of India. The Government has also asked the Serious Fraud Investigation Office to file prosecution under provisions of Companies Act, 1956 and the Indian Penal Code against Goldquest International Pvt. Ltd. (including its group company Questnet Enterprises Pvt. Ltd.) and AbcindyaNetworks Pvt. Ltd. Investigation reports in respect of M/s. Unipay2U group of companies and Speakasia Online Pte. Ltd., are under examination.

(c) to (e) Government in the Department of Consumer Affairs is considering inclusion of necessary safeguards for protection of rights of consumers of technology based marketing e-commerce, telemarketing etc., as part of the proposed amendment in the Consumer Protection Act, 1986.