The government may ask e-commerce companies such as Flipkart and Amazon for more information on their operations in India to examine whether they are indulging in predatory pricing.
"We had sent some questions to e-commerce companies on their operations such as their top sellers and pricing aspects. The replies have been furnished and are being examined. We may ask for more information and send fresh questions," a government official told Business Line.
The DPIIT had sent questionnaires to the e-commerce companies asking them to disclose information such as the names of top five sellers on their platform and the price of goods sold by the preferred vendors. They were also asked to specify the support given by them to sellers. This was done to examine if they had a connection with sellers which could lead to the companies influencing prices of the items sold on their platform.
The questions follow allegations made by traders body
Confederation of Indian Traders (CAIT) about alleged violation of FDI rules by e-commerce majors. CAIT has accused Flipkart and Amazon of predatory pricing, deep discounting, controlling inventory and influencing prices.
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal had earlier said that the government was probing Flipkart and Amazon over the alleged predatory pricing. He warned that in case of any violation, there could be stringent action as stipulated by law.
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