MLM companies plans agitation against “police harassment”

Affirming police harassment, MLM companies like Amway on Tuesday said they are planning country- broad agitations if the Government fails to suppress their mistreatment within 45 days.

The Forum for Direct Selling Companies & Consumers of India (FDCI) said planning agitations is the “only choice left for over 7 crore Indian distributors under given desperate situations”.

The agitations will be arranged along with Confederation of Direct Selling Distributors Association of India (CDSDAI) – a trade union  and an offshoot of the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC), FDCI said in a statement.

It might be remembered that USA-based direct selling office Amway’s India MD & CEO William S Pinckney and two supervisors were arrested by Kerala Police in May. Later on, there were released on bail.

As there is no proper regulation in place specific to this industry, authorities in numerous states have been attempting to put this business model into the purview of the Prize Chits & Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978 (PCMC Act) and register criminal cases against business and its suppliers, FDCI affirmed.

“The vagueness in this sector is being exploited by the police officers to amass cash from suppliers and companies making use of underhanded means,” it alleged.

“More than 7 crore people in India who are making a living through multi-level marketing (MLM) are going through a never ever before threat and unpredictability as the authorities in numerous states have actually begun catching these business and their distributors into criminal cases stating that all MLM business models are unlawful as per PCMC Act,” P A Joseph, General Secretary of FDCI and CDSDAI, stated.

According to FDCI statement, genuine multi-level Marketing companies use the MLM model to offer or disperse their items. In authentic MLM companies independent suppliers buy products at wholesale rates and offer them at market price and this way they make an earnings, it included.

“In illegal pyramid schemes there are no genuine products and people sign up with the model to make fast money by sponsoring more people. Police authorities are not attempting to separate in between the genuine business models and unlawful pyramid schemes and this has affected operations of many excellent business,” it said.

“Multinational companies which have actually invested millions of United States dollars in India are planning to end up their businesses because of such harassments. Unfortunately all this has finally afflicted crores of individuals in India who rely on this sector for their livelihood.”