E-commerce firms Snapdeal, IndiaMART, Wishnbuy.com and Craft Comparison have been issued notices by the Madhya Pradesh Tiger Strike Force for allegedly trading wildlife products on their platforms, according to a media report.
The government body has served notices to these firms following an investigation into the seizure of wildlife-related items in Indore, the Press Trust of India reported, citing a state public relations department official.
“The companies were told to remove all such content and to submit a clarification as to why an action should not be initiated against them,” the official was quoted as saying in the report.
According to the official, Sumit Sharma and Firoz Ali were arrested and charged under the Wildlife Protection Act after products made from wild animals’ limbs were confiscated from their company named Shubh Bhakti.
They confessed during the investigation that they traded these wildlife-related items through online platforms such as Snapdeal, IndiaMART, Wishnbuy and Craft Comparison. They also said they target superstitious people who believe that possessing such products would help them become rich, grow business and win court cases.
Email queries sent to Snapdeal and IndiaMART did not elicit any response. Wishnbuy and Craft Comparison could not be reached for comments.
The report said wildlife products are sold in a large quantity to customers at a high price.
According to a report by The Times of India, these websites were sent notices under Section 52 (attempted abetment) of the Wildlife Protection Act. The Indore-based company was selling products made from limbs of monitor lizards and other wildlife species.
