General Motors India has previously decided to step out of the country and the dealers were asked to clear the stock as soon as possible. The dealers of GM have apparently sat on a “dharna” as a mark of agitation at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. The dealers are calling the exit of General Motors as a planned conspiracy.
Majority of the 96 dealers in the country had been present in the protest. These dealers own about 140 showrooms in the country. Commenting in the incident as the fitsy one of a kind in the Industry, the president of Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations, John Paul Kuttukaran said “Never before have automobile dealers resorted to a dharna as a method of protest. But anguished by the decision of GM India to quit the domestic market without keeping their long standing dealers in the loop, we have been forced to do this,”
Images Source: AutoCar India
FADA is the apex body of Automobile Dealers in the country. The federation had received due permission from the authorities to perform peaceful protests at Jantar Mantar. The dealers are already considering filing action suits against the American automaker in the US. The dealers clarified that following the companies promises and commitments regarding expansion and growth in India, dealers had invested money in it.
Projecting a market share of 10% GM made all dealer invest 7 to 10 crores in the business. With about a 100 dealers, the liability amounts to an amount of INR 1000 crores. And the company is only willing to compensate for losses made on the account of discounts being offered to customers.
And the compensation will only be offered if dealers are willing to buy the order of 2000 cars at the Talegaon plant. The dealers will also be having to pay huge bank loans in order to pay for infrastructure revamp costs and workforce relocation.
