Centre issues notice to Amazon, Flipkart, others over sale of Pakistani flags in India

Centre issues notice to Amazon, Flipkart, others over sale of Pakistani flags in India


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The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued notices to Amazon India, Flipkart, Ubuy India, Etsy, The Flag Company, and The Flag Corporation over the sale of Pakistani flags


and related merchandise, Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Pralhad Joshi said in a post on X.


“Such insensitivity will not be tolerated. E-commerce platforms are hereby directed to immediately remove all such content and adhere to national laws,” said Joshi.


Meanwhile, Amazon India issues a statement, saying the e-commerce platform operates as an online marketplace where independent third-party sellers offer and sell their products. "We require


sellers to offer products which comply with applicable Indian laws and Amazon policies. We remove non-compliant product listings upon notification from relevant regulatory authorities. The


products in question are not available for purchase on our marketplace," it said.


The decision follows a letter from the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) addressed to Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and Joshi, urging an immediate prohibition on the online


sale of items bearing Pakistani symbols. The letter, sent on Tuesday, was prompted by growing national security concerns linked to Operation Sindoor.


“I write to express my deep concern over a matter that strikes at the very core of our national sentiment and sovereignty. It has come to light that Pakistani flags, logo-bearing mugs, and


T-shirts are being openly sold on major e-commerce platforms such as Amazon and Flipkart,” BC Bhartia, national president of CAIT, wrote in the letter to Goyal.


“Such actions by e-commerce platforms reflect a blatant disregard for the dignity of our armed forces, the sovereignty of India, and the emotions of every patriotic Indian citizen,” CAIT


said. “This is not merely an oversight. It is a grave matter that risks undermining national unity and poses a potential threat to our internal harmony and security,” it added.


This comes at a time when homegrown travel platforms have started boycotting Turkey and Azerbaijan for their open support to Pakistan during the recent conflict with India.


Indian travellers have expressed strong sentiments over the past week, with bookings for Azerbaijan and Turkey decreasing by 60%, while cancellations have surged by 250% during the same


period, a MakeMyTrip spokesperson told Fortune India.


“In solidarity with our nation and out of deep respect for our armed forces, we strongly support this sentiment and advise all against all non-essential travel to Azerbaijan and Turkey. We


have already discontinued all promotions and offers on our platform to discourage tourism to these two destinations,” the ticket booking platform said.


Online travel platform Cleartrip said Indian travellers have made their sentiments clear, with cancellations for Turkey and Azerbaijan rising by 260% over the past week. “In solidarity with


the nation and in the interest of standing together during this time, we urge everyone to defer all non-essential travel to Turkey & Azerbaijan,” it said.


Commenting on the move to suspend travel bookings for Türkiye and Azerbaijan, Rikant Pittie, CEO and Co-Founder, EaseMyTrip, said, “EaseMyTrip was the only online travel agency to boycott


the Maldives, keeping bookings closed for over a year, not for attention, but out of respect for our nation until relations between the two countries began to normalise. After the Pahalgam


terror attack, while many stayed silent, we were once again the first to issue a travel advisory against Turkey and Azerbaijan for their open support to Pakistan, urging Indian travellers to


avoid non-essential visits.”


Travel aggregator Ixigo, too, suspended flight and hotel bookings for Turkey, Azerbaijan and China following the India-Pakistan conflict. “In solidarity with our nation, ixigo is suspending


flight and hotel bookings for Turkey, Azerbaijan and China. Because when it comes to Bharat, we don’t think twice,” it said in a post on X.