RSS-Linked Magazine Calls Amazon ‘East India Company 2.0’

New Delhi: Panchajanya, a magazine associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) has called e-commerce major Amazon “East India Company 2.0”, PTI reported.

The article criticising Amazon is the cover story of the upcoming edition of the magazine, which will be out on October 3. Panchjanya Editor Hitesh Shankar shared an image of the cover story featuring Amazon Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos on  Twitter. This came weeks after the same magazine had criticised Infosys, a move that the RSS had distanced itself from, PTI added.

The magazine has referred to allegations that legal representatives of Amazon bribed Indian government officials. “What did it [the company] do wrong it needed to bribe,” the article said. “Why do people consider this company a threat to indigenous entrepreneurship, economic freedom and culture?”

Notably, a whistleblower had alleged that the legal fee Amazon had paid to a counsel for the firm was channelled to bribe government officials, The Morning Context

reported last week. A spokesperson for Amazon said that the e-commerce company has “zero tolerance” for corruption and will fully investigate all the charges.

Accusing Amazon of establishing many proxy entities, the Panchjanya article claimed that “there are reports that it has distributed crores in bribes for policies in its favour”.