CMDA locks horns with Epson

Mumbai-based Consumables and Media Dealers Association (CMDA) has strongly

condemned Epson India’s action against some of its members, who were found

selling fake Epson cartridges.

Eight consumables resellers were raided simultaneously in Mumbai with the

help of Police and 829 counterfeit Epson ink cartridges worth Rs 7.7 lakh were

seized. The proprietors of the eight outlets were remanded for three to four

days and are now out on bail.

According to Devang Shah, Administrative Director, CMDA, Epson should not

have taken such harsh steps at this level because resellers themselves were not

aware of the consumables being fake.

However, RV Ramprasad, Regional Manager-West, Epson India, who was

spearheading the clean-up act, has refused to take this justification. "We

had a meeting with CMDA and warnings were issued few months before raids were

conducted. I cannot believe that these dealers were selling fakes ignorantly,

because none of the eight people raided could produce sales invoices," he

justifies.

"If

it is a genuine gray material, we don’t have any problem. But one has to at

least show us sales invoices, " he adds.

Countering this Devang says, "Even Epson officials were not able to

differentiate the fakes from original, then how these dealers were expected to

do it." According to him, Epson should raid the manufacturer of such

materials and not the resellers. "It is wrong on Epson’s part to take

such a step without educating its dealers to identify fake consumables. And

there is nothing wrong in selling imported material," adds he.

Interestingly, the seized fake materials had hologram with the word ‘Private’

(in Epson India Private Ltd) spelt wrongly as ‘Prihate’.

According to Ramprasad, the need to take such tough step came only when the

genuine channel started complaining about some products selling at lower than

normal prices.

Operation Bravo – as Epson code-names it, was conducted with the help of a

hired agency and the Social Service division of the Police. According to

Ramprasad, around 70 informers were placed all over Mumbai market to check these

activities. "Based on confirmed information we took the action. The truth

is not fully exposed as we are yet to nab the source," warns Ramprasad.

NELSON JOHNY