India arrest Vivo Chinese employee
Business
The company has denied any wrongdoing and said it complies with Indian law
(Web Desk) - India's financial crimes agency has arrested a Chinese employee of smartphone maker Vivo, the firm said.
Indian officials have not commented yet but Vivo said it "will exercise all available legal options" on behalf of its employee, Andrew Kuang.
The worker was arrested on Tuesday.
Authorities raided Vivo's office last year, accusing it of illegal remittances from India to China.
It is the second-biggest smartphone brand in India, after Samsung, according to industry data.
Vivo has denied any wrongdoing and said it complies with Indian law.
The arrest comes on the back of a widening rift between India and China.
Last week, Reuters reported that Indian police had formally accused Vivo of helping transfer funds illegally to NewsClick, a news portal that is under investigation on charges of spreading Chinese propaganda.
Tuesday's arrest happened under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). It is "a very stringent law and allows for criminal cases to be filed, unlike regular foreign exchange violations which are majorly considered civil offenses," according to Atul Pandey, Senior Partner at legal firm Khaitan.
Vivo has also been accused of customs evasion by the tax enforcement agency. The firm is owned by China's BBK Electronics, which also operates brands such as Oppo and Realme in India.
