E-biz should furnish compliance certificates with FDI norms every fiscal: CAIT

E-commerce players should be asked to furnish certificates about their compliance with foreign direct investment norms every fiscal, traders' body CAIT said on Friday.

In a letter to Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) also said that "those who are unable to obtain the said certificate should not be allowed to raise funds and the operations of their portal should be suspended". The government last month announced changes to FDI policy for the e-commerce sector, which would put an end to a barrage of discounts and cashback offers by online platforms with foreign investment from February.

The traders' body alleged that various global e-commerce players have initiated a "vested interest campaign" demanding deferment, extension, amendment or changes in the said policy. "If the government succumbs to their arbitrary pressure, the trading community will (be) left with no other alternative but to launch a national campaign against any such deferment or extension or otherwise and will expose sinister designs of these global e-commerce players," CAIT said in the letter. The traders' body also urged the minister to immediately roll out the proposed e-commerce policy for the sector.

Tightening norms for e-commerce firms having foreign investment, the government had barred online marketplaces such as Flipkart and Amazon from selling products of companies where they hold stakes and banned exclusive marketing arrangements that could influence product price.

The confederation also asked the minister to set up an independent regulatory authority for the sector. "The said authority should be duly empowered to take action against any entity which defies the policy," CAIT said.

(With inputs from agencies.)