Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi alleged that its top executives faced threats of "physical violence" and coercion during questioning by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Reuters reported on May 7. Late last month, ED seized Rs 5,551.27 crores from the bank accounts of Xiaomi for illegally remitted funds to three foreign-based entities, but on May 6, the Karnataka High Court put on hold the enforcement agency's decision and scheduled the next hearing on May 12. The company is the leading smartphone manufacturer in India with a one-fourth market share. According to court filings seen by Reuters, officials from the ED warned the company's former India managing director, Manu Kumar Jain, and current Chief Financial Officer Sameer B.S. Rao, and their families of "dire consequences" if they did not submit statements as desired by the agency. The executives "were able to resist the pressure for some time, (but) they ultimately relented under such extreme and hostile abuse and pressure and involuntarily made some statements," it added. ED refuted these charges as "untrue and baseless," saying that the company executives had deposed "voluntarily in the most conducive environment." Earlier story (May 2): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has seized Rs 5,551.27 crores from the bank accounts of Xiaomi India under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA) as part of an ongoing investigation into the company's financial activities, the agency said in a press release on April 29. Xiaomi India distributes Android OS phones under the popular brand name ‘Mi’. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the…
