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The
police on Sunday arrested two men in the state with 20 kg of
marijuana and found they were using Amazon's India shopping
website to order and smuggle the substance further to various
states.
Smugglers used the Amazon India platform to order and deliver
the drug, which was listed under the guise of dry stevia leaves,
a natural food sweetener. The Amazon platform was allegedly used
for 1,000 kilograms of such marijuana sales so far, worth
$148,000, police alleged in its statement.
On Monday, Manoj Singh, a senior police official in the
district, said Amazon executives have been asked to explain how
their platform could be used for the sale of banned substances.
"The international company has the power of artificial
intelligence, so it's a big thing happening on their platform,"
Singh said. "There is involvement of Amazon at many levels in
this marijuana delivery - from providing logistical support to
delivery."
"The lawyers from Amazon will probably visit us tomorrow."
An Amazon spokesperson said in a statement it was investigating
whether there was any non-compliance by a seller.
“We do not allow the listing and sale of products which are
prohibited under law to be sold in India,” the statement said,
adding the company would cooperate with the authorities.
The U.S. company in India operates a marketplace website where
sellers can list their products and Amazon also provides
logistics and warehouse servicing to them.
Police officer Singh said his team also visited one of Amazon's
delivery hubs in Gwalior city in Madhya Pradesh as part of the
investigation to get details of alleged marijuana delivery
consignments.
Indian authorities have in recent years intensified their
efforts to crack down on illicit drugs. Many high-profile Indian
actors and TV personalities have been under scrutiny from
narcotics officials since last year.
(Reporting by Saurabh Sharma and Abhirup Roy; Writing by Aditya
Kalra; Editing by Angus MacSwan and Bernadette Baum)
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