KVIC Forces Flipkart, Amazon, Snapdeal to Remove 160 Fake Khadi Product Links

• Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has forced e-commerce portals like Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal, and others to remove fake web links selling products in the brand name of 'Khadi'.
• These e-commerce portals were selling products like Khadi masks, herbals soaps, shampoos, cosmetics, herbal Mehandi, jackets, kurta.
• Last month, KVIC had issued legal notices to two firms -- Khadi Essentials and Khadi Global -- for unauthorisedly selling cosmetics and other products in the name of Khadi.

Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) on Saturday has forced e-commerce portals like Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal, and others to remove over 160 web links selling fake products in the brand name of 'Khadi'.

KVIC is a statutory corporation under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and is the original owner of the 'Khadi India' brand.

These e-commerce portals were selling products like Khadi masks, herbals soaps, shampoos, cosmetics, herbal Mehandi, jackets, kurta, and many such products through different sellers using the brand name “Khadi”. This created a false impression among online buyers that these commodities were genuine Khadi products.

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KVIC also said, "After KVIC served legal notice, Khadi Global has also discontinued using its website www.khadiglobalstore.com and also removed its social media pages on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram and have sought 10 days time to remove all such contents and product using the brand name."

KVIC added that a majority of the products that have been removed were being sold by one Ayush E-Traders. This firm has confirmed to KVIC that it has removed 140 links for various products that were being sold as “Vagad’s Khadi Products”.

Vinai Kumar Saxena, KVIC Chairman, said that KVIC has given the violators the option of either stop selling products in the name of Khadi or face legal action.

KVIC has put in place a robust online enforcement plan for effective monitoring of Khadi India trademark rights. It has employed a dedicated legal team, a mix of human and technological tools to ensure systematic and continuous monitoring and takedown of unauthorized products being sold in the name of Khadi.

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There has been a steep rise in violation of Khadi trademark as the popularity of Khadi has grown in recent years. Exploiting this opportunity, a number of online sellers began selling random products in the name of Khadi.

Last month, KVIC had issued legal notices to two firms -- Khadi Essentials and Khadi Global -- for unauthorisedly selling cosmetics and other products in the name of Khadi. KVIC has also sought damages to the tune of Rs 500 crore from Fabindia which is pending before the Mumbai High Court.

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