Amazon Investigates Bribery Allegations in India
September 30, 2021
If it did happen, Amazon had nothing to do with it. That is presumably the message the company would like us to take from its investigation. TechCrunch reports, “Amazon Starts Probe Over Bribe to Gov’t Officials by its Lawyers in India, Report Says.” Writer Manish Singh tells us:
“Amazon has launched an investigation into the conduct of its legal representatives in India following a complaint from a whistleblower who alleged that one or more of the company’s reps had bribed government officials, Indian news and analysis outlet the Morning Context reported on Monday. The company is investigating whether legal fees financed by it was used for bribing government officials, the report said, which cited unnamed sources and didn’t identify the government officials. Amazon has placed Rahul Sundaram, a senior corporate counsel, on leave, the report (paywalled) added. In a statement to TechCrunch, an Amazon spokesperson said the company has ‘zero tolerance’ for corruption, but didn’t comment on the investigation.”
Singh reminds us that India is an important market for Amazon, where the company has invested billions of dollars and has been expanding aggressively. All is not going smoothly. The company is currently under an antitrust investigation in that country and Reuters recently reported it had misrepresented its relationships with major vendors and worked to circumvent India’s foreign investment regulations. To literally add insult to injury, Singh writes:
“A top-level executive at the company … was summoned and questioned earlier this year by local police over allegations that one of its political dramas on Prime Video hurt religious sentiments and caused public anger. The company later issued a rare apology to users in India over the nine-part mini series.”
An apology, no matter how rare, might not be enough to get Amazon out of this. But not to worry. We are sure the company will be able to pay any fines levied against it without breaking a sweat.
Cynthia Murrell, September 30, 2021
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