The RSS-affiliated Swadeshi Jagran Manch on Tuesday urged the Centre to curb Chinese imports and clamp down on western e-commerce giants, dubbing them the “East India Company of the 21st century”.

At $113.5 billion, China was India’s largest source of imports in 2024-25.

The Manch’s nudge to the government came ahead of the outfit’s launch of a countrywide campaign on Thursday to promote indigenous products following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent call to citizens to shun foreign goods.

“We also call upon the government to curb the imports of Chinese products and protect the national interest while entering into free trade agreements with other countries,” Manch co-convenor Ashwani Mahajan said in a statement on Tuesday, while announcing the launch of the “swadeshi” campaign.

The RSS affiliate urged the government to regulate western e-commerce giants to prevent “predatory pricing”.

“We also call upon the government to regulate e-commerce giants, and stop them from indulging in predatory pricing, warehousing of their products being sold on their platforms, stop the practice of preferred sellers and selling of products with their own labels; and uphold the law of the land,” it added.

“New digital monopolies — Amazon, Walmart (Flipkart), and other western e-commerce giants increasingly resemble the East India Company of the 21st century,” the statement said.

To keep the flame of the military onslaught against Pakistan burning, Modi had last month exhorted citizens and traders to shun foreign goods, stressing that “Operation Sindoor is not just the responsibility of the armed forces”.

Mahajan said that on Thursday, the Manch, along with several traders’ outfits, associations of manufacturing companies and social organisations, would launch the “Swadeshi Suraksha Evam Swavlamban Abhiyan” from Delhi.

The Manch has undertaken campaigns targeting retail giants in the past as well, but Mahajan said Operation Sindoor and “the emerging global scenario due to tariff wars” had come as an opportunity to revive the drive.

“The people of the country saw how countries like China and Turkey backed Pakistan when our armed forces launched strikes against terror camps. The people have realised that we have to make our country self-reliant and not depend on others, especially unfriendly countries,” Mahajan said.

Mahajan lauded the Modi government for taking steps to boost domestic production.

Mahajan, however, said the rules framed by the government to regulate e-commerce platforms lacked strict enforcement. “E-commerce giants are using fake made-in-India labels to hoodwink customers in violation of government rules,” Mahajan said.

“India has talent, resources and entrepreneurial spirit. What has been lacking is policy prioritisation and consumer consciousness,” he said, stressing the need for public campaigns and mass mobilisation efforts.