Source: Hindustan Times, June 11, 2012
Cookies-to-cheese
major Britannia Industries is conducting an internal investigation at its
supply chain and logistics department to probe alleged misuse of company powers
in giving orders by unfairly favouring some suppliers at the cost of others. This
comes within a few days of an alleged Rs. 870-crore fraud at at the Indian arm
of German sportswear giant Adidas AG’s Reebok unit .
The high-profile probe is being
directly led by Vinita Bali, managing director, Britannia Industries, said
informed sources. The investigation aims to find out the number of employees
involved.
“We have come across instances
of certain practices and behaviour, which are in violation of our code of
business conduct, which clearly spells out the ethical standards of behaviour
from all Britannia employees at all times. These are being investigated
thoroughly and appropriate action will be taken against those employees who
have violated that code of business conduct, which every employee signs,” said
the company spokesperson.
While the sources said that
Bali took swift action and fired 28 people after the scam surfaced, Britannia
played down the entire incident, claiming employees were still under probe.
“Ten people have been asked not
to show up at work till the investigation is over,” said the company
spokesperson.
Britannia has strict and clear
code of business conduct and code of conduct for prevention of insider trading
by employees. The management was quick to take suitable action once the
incident came to light, though it could not be verified since how long the
activity was going on, said sources.
The company refused to provide
further clarifications. “The probe will be quick and action will be taken,”
said the spokesperson.
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