After Infy row, Panchjanya compares Amazon with East India Company

Undeterred by the brickbats it received for its article that branded IT major Infosys as “anti-national”, Panchjanya, a magazine affiliated to the RSS, has now compared global e-tailer Amazon with the East India Company while launching a barrage of accusations against it.

In a recent cover story titled ‘East India Company 2.0’, the magazine has accused Amazon of not only floating shell companies to ‘capture’ the Indian market, but also making fun of Hindu deities and corrupting family values through content on Amazon Prime.

“Actually, Amazon too wants to have sole rights on the Indian market. For this it has started taking steps to encircle the political, economic, and individual freedom of people here. It is accused of floating shell companies to capture the e-market platform, of bribing to have policies in favour, and of airing programmes opposed to Indian culture through Prime Videos,” Indian Express quoted the article.

The article accuses Amazon of floating its own companies to sell products which goes against its promise to provide a platform for small traders to sell products through the website.

“The company floated supplier entities such as Cloudtail and Apiria in which it had significant stake and indirect control,” the cover story says.

Also read: RSS distances itself from article slamming Infosys; India Inc. silent

The British East India Company, which first came to India for trade, ended up taking control of large parts of the country and ruling it through military power for over a hundred years.

The article says, just like the East India Company, Amazon is attacking Indian culture following which there would be religious conversions.

“Today the same thing is being done by foreign companies. Amazon is now stuck in such a controversy. Following cognizance of certain anti-Hindu content in programs such as Tandav and Paatal Lok on its OTT platform Prime Videos by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and some state governments, the company has apologized. People had alleged that Prime Videos are regularly airing such shows in which Hindu deities are made fun of and family values are assaulted,” the article reads.

Also accusing Amazon of promoting Christianity, the article says that it is to be noted that the company funding two Christian organisations.