Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra on Tuesday said that his government has directed the police to register a first information report against e-commerce platform Amazon for allegedly selling clothing and food products with the image of the national flag, PTI reported.

Mishra said that nothing that insults the country would be tolerated.

“It has come to my notice that our national flag is used on products being sold by the online e-commerce platform Amazon,” he told reporters. “It is intolerable that even it [the national flag] has been used on shoes.”

Advertisement

Mishra also said that it was in violation of the National Flag Code, 2002.

The Code states that no person shall use the flag for trade and businesses purposes without the permission of the Union government.

“The flag shall not be used as a portion of costume or uniform of any description nor shall it be embroidered or printed upon cushions, handkerchiefs, napkins or any other material,” it states.

On Monday, the the e-commerce platform had said that third-parties sell products directly to customers on Amazon and it was responsible for ensuring compliances with the sale.

Advertisement

“We require all products offered on the marketplace to comply with applicable laws and constantly take appropriate action on non-compliance,” it added. “Amazon remains committed to taking necessary action against sellers who may have listed any non-compliant products.”

Earlier too, the government had ordered cases to be filed against the e-commerce platform.

In November, the state home minster had ordered a case to be registered against Amazon officials after a man committed suicide using tablets of poisonous sulphas, an agricultural fumigant, through the e-commerce site.

The same month in Bhind district, the police had also filed a FIR against unnamed Amazon officials after they caught a gang allegedly selling marijuana under the guise of selling stevia, a sweetener, through the platform.