ED begins probe against online e-retail firms

The Enforcement Directorate has begun a comprehensive probe against a dozen popular online retail firms in the country for alleged violations of foreign direct investment rules in their e-commerce businesses.

The Enforcement Directorate, according to sources, has received a communication from the country’s banking regulator — the Reserve Bank of India regarding a few firms while it has took up the rest cases suo-moto for probe under the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

A special team of officials of the central probe agency, sources said, is working to study the business operations of these firms which have thronged the online retail marketplace in the last few 

years.