Mumbai, 4th January , 2017 (GPN) :In a surprise move, two shareholders of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd (sub-franchisee of QNet in India) – Michael Ferreira and Malcolm Desai and two ex-directors have been transferred from Taloja Jail to EOW Thane. The officials are to be produced in front of Thane MPID Court today.The alleged complaint in this new FIR is similar to the set of several complaints which have been received by EOW Mumbai in the past and have been treated as witness statements for the purpose of the Mumbai case. The latter case is more than three and half years old.
At a juncture, when the officials and company have already been charge-sheeted (as on December 27, 2016), bringing up a new FIR dated December 14, 2016 seems stage managed by vested interests. In fact, the FIR relates to a complaint conforming to year 2014.
The company is concerned with the fact that the complainant has filed an FIR in December 2016 pertaining to a complaint of year 2014, more than 2 and a half years later, that too without addressing the issue with the company first.
While complaints from all over Maharashtra as well as some parts of the country are being directed to and investigated by EOW Mumbai, why a new FIR has been registered on the basis of an individual complaint which could have been forwarded to EOW Mumbai and treated as a witnesses statement like several other complaints.
Further, while there are about fifty similar complaints registered with EOW Thane in the past three and a half years, it is surprising to note that one particular FIR of December 2016 has been Activated. The company believes this to be an inorganic pattern of investigations, aimed at creating deliberate media hype when all matters could have been clubbed into one FIR. Another concern is that all the FIRs registered by EOW in the past three and a half years have a very similar pattern where the complainant has filed a complaint against an Independent Representative for misrepresentation of the company/business and/or its products. In some complaints company officials are named, deliberately connecting their names eventually to an FIR.While the company and officials are being investigated for the past three and a half years, the individuals against whom the complaints have been filed have not been investigated during this period.
What still remains surprising is that none of the complainants have approached the company to address their grievance. QNET has a well-established and responsive customer grievance department that addresses complaints. In fact, the company has a zero tolerance policy towards any misrepresentation of either the company or its products. All information about customer support and the details of our policies and procedures are available publicly on the company website.
We are seriously concerned by the manner in which some complaints have been filed as FIRs with the police directly without any attempts being made to bring it to the notice of the company first. These individuals have neither addressed their problems with the company, nor have they sought any redressal from a Consumer forum. The investigating agencies have also not verified facts and have not directed the complainant to address the issue with the company before registering a complaint. We strongly believe that a vested party who is a very big competitor in the business wanted to consolidate its position by creating a false impression in the minds of the public and policy makers about QNet in India.
This has not only led to erosion of the QNET brand, given the timing of this situation, it raises questions as to why the new FIR has been launched now, further increasing the harassment of the accused individuals, besides their families, and in effect misdirecting the judicial proceedings related to their bail process.
The two shareholders of Vihaan Direct Selling and two ex-directors had voluntarily surrendered to EOW on September 30th, 2016. They have been fully cooperating with the authorities and awaiting regular bail process since the time EOW Mumbai filed the charge sheet. The company has already submitted to EOW Mumbai over 50,000 pages of documentation relating to its business model, policies and procedures as well as financials of the last 3+ years. It is rather curious to know that QNet has been under investigation since August 2013 based on an FIR arising from a cancelled transaction of INR 30,000 in Mumbai. After a prolonged investigation of 40 months, a Charge Sheet was filed on December 27, 2016.
There have been many direct selling companies in India like us who have faced similar challenges due to a lack of legislation of this industry. We are looking forward to a new era of business, thanks to the recently released model direct selling guidelines for the industry, which includes a strong focus on consumer redressal. It will be vital that the guidelines are implemented in true spirit, to protect the consumer and allow the company to conduct its business without harassment.QNet has faith in the law of the country and is confident that justice will prevail.
ABOUT QNET:
QNet is one of Asia’s leading Direct Selling Company that offers a portfolio of lifestyle products to customers in more than 100 countries through its proprietary e-commerce platform. The company also offers an entrepreneurial network marketing business opportunity. QNet has offices and agency representations in 25 countries around the world and employs approximately 1,000 employees. Established in Hong Kong in 1998, QNet is a member of the Direct Selling Association of Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines.
QNet is also a part of the Hong Kong Health Food Association and the Health Supplements Industry Association of Singapore among others. In India, QNet operates through its franchisee Vihaan Direct Selling (India) Pvt Ltd and is a member of Health Foods and Dietary Supplements Association (HADSA).
QNet is active in sports sponsorships around the world, including football, badminton and more, due to the company’s strong belief that the drive, passion and teamwork involved in sports mirrors the values upheld by QNet. QNet is currently the official direct selling partner of the Manchester City Football Club (MCFC).
