New Delhi, Aug 27 (PTI) Reliance Retail Ltd's online grocery shopping portal JioMart has warned of fake websites seeking franchisees in its name, saying it is not operating any dealership or franchisee model at present.

"We have been informed about certain unscrupulous individuals who are creating fake websites, pretending to be us or associated with us and duping innocent individuals under the pretense of granting franchisee of JioMart services," the firm said in a notice.

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Reliance Retail said it has recently launched online grocery service under the brand JioMart.

"We would like to inform the public at large that we are not operating any dealership or franchisee model currently nor have we appointed any franchisee or any agent for... appointment (of) any dealer or franchisee in any manner whatsoever," it said. "Further we do not charge any amount under the pretense of appointing a person as a franchisee."

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Reliance in May started its online grocery shopping portal across India. The JioMart shopping app connects local kirana stores with consumers via WhatsApp.

"The public, manufacturers, traders, and dealers are hereby cautioned against such unscrupulous individuals and their online fraud activities; and are hereby warned that we will not be responsible any business dealing with such dishonest individuals," the company said in the notice.

It also warned of initiating legal proceedings against those misusing its brand to protect its "goodwill and reputation".

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)