Business rivals vandalising telecom infrastructure, alleges RIL

RIL in its petition said these acts of violence have endangered the lives of thousands of its employees and caused damage and disruption to the vital communications infrastructure, sales and service outlets run by its subsidiaries in the two states.

The co mpany alleged that these miscreants indulging in vandalism have been instigated and aided by vested interests and the company’s business rivals. 

“Taking advantage of the ongoing farmers’ agitation near the national capital, these vested interests have launched an incessant, malicious and motivated vilification campaign against Reliance, which has absolutely no basis in truth, The company stated. 

The petition also bares the falsehood of the campaign by placing some irrefutable facts before the high court. These facts establish that Reliance has nothing whatsoever to do with the three farm laws currently debated in the country, and in no way benefits from them. “As such, the sole nefarious purpose of linking the name of Reliance to these laws is to harm our businesses and damage our reputation,” it added.

RIL said neither Reliance Retail Limited (RRL), Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited (RJIL), or any of its other affiliates have not done any “corporate” or “contract” farming in the past, and have absolutely no plans to enter this business.

Neither Reliance nor any of its subsidiaries has purchased any agricultural land, directly or indirectly, in Punjab/Haryana or anywhere else in India, for the purpose of “corporate” or “contract” farming, RIL said, adding that the company has absolutely no plans to do so.

“Reliance Retail is an unmatched leader in organised retail business in India. It retails products of all categories including food grains and staples, fruits and vegetables, items of daily use, apparels, medicines, electronic products of various brands belonging to independent manufacturers and suppliers in the country. It does not purchase any food grains directly from farmers. It has never entered into long-term procurement contracts to gain unfair advantage over farmers or sought that its suppliers buy from farmers at less than remunerative prices, nor will it ever do so,” RIL pointed out.

On the contrary, RIL said, it has immense gratitude and the greatest respect for India’s kisans, who are the ‘Anna Data’ of 1.3 billion Indians. “Reliance and its affiliates are committed to doing everything to enrich and empower them. As customers of their services, we believe in building a strong and equal partnership with Indian farmers on the basis of shared prosperity, inclusive development and an equitable New India,” it added. 

RIL said the company and its affiliates fully share and support the aspiration of Indian farmers to get a fair and profitable price on a predictable basis for what they produce with exemplary hard work, innovation and dedication. “Reliance seeks significant augmentation of their incomes on a sustainable basis, and pledges to work towards this goal. Indeed, we shall insist on our suppliers to strictly abide by the Minimum Support Price (MSP) mechanism, and/or any other mechanism for remunerative price for farm produce, as may be determined and implemented by the government.”

Far from hurting the interests of Indian farmers, RIL said its businesses have actually benefited them and the Indian public at large, as is obvious from the following facts:

*  Reliance Retail has built India’s largest organized retail business by investing in economies of scale and creating world-class technology-enabled supply chains, which has brought significant gains to both Indian farmers and consumers.

*  Jio’s fully 4G network has provided world-class data connectivity to every single village in India at the most affordable rates anywhere in the world, thus bringing the benefits of the Digital Revolution to millions of Indian farmers. In just four short years, Jio has become

*  During the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Jio’s network has become a lifeline for millions of farmers and others in rural and urban India. It has helped kisans, traders and consumers to participate in digital commerce. It has enabled professionals to work from home, and students to learn from home. It has aided teachers, doctors, patients, courts, various government and private offices, industries and charitable establishments. 

While thanking government authorities, especially the police, of Punjab and Haryana, for their action against miscreants so far, RIL said, through its petition in the high court, the company has sought punitive and deterrent action against miscreants and vested interests, so that Reliance can run all its businesses smoothly in Punjab and Haryana once again.

The company also urgeed the public and the media to be aware of the correct facts and not be misguided by false information and narratives peddled by vested interests for their own gain and benefit.