Online vendors body AIOVA again raises demand for e-commerce regulatory body

Some months ago, All India Online Vendors Association (AIOVA) said the e-commerce players are still offering heavy discounts on private label products and there is no such level playing field between online marketplaces and online sellers.

The issue between online vendors and the e-commerce platforms is still continued and being far from over. The AIOVA, which represents over 3,500 online vendors, has once again requested the government to frame a regulatory body to monitor e-commerce players and their merchant policies.

The demand from the association has intensified after the deal between Flipkart and Walmart; the latter bought the country’s biggest online player in worth $16 billion.

“We had made this demand in the E-commerce Committee formed under Niti Aayog in the year 2016 where we were assured they will immediately start working on it,” said a statement released by AIOVA.

AIOVA earlier complained that they were kept out of all the discussions between Flipkart and Walmart. They are unsure what would be their future on the platform.

Besides, the body also showed disappointment to the commerce department for not getting a representation on the think-tank setup for digital trade.

In April this year, the central government established a think tank to craft policies about digital trade as well as chalking out holistic domestic policy for e-commerce companies and help them in cross-border trade.

Another body of traders Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) is also pressing for similar regulations.

CAIT claimed that the deal will trigger loss funding and predatory pricing culture in the Indian e-commerce space.

Taking a strong stand against the deal, CAIT has also proposed to form a regulatory body saying that no such deal should be allowed until the formation of the authority body.

Claiming of flouting FDI norms, Swadesh Jagaran Manch, an affiliation of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and other trade lobby groups have recently raised similar concerns.

The development was first reported by Medianama via PTI.