In aftermath of Kerala deluge, Paytm inundated by Twitter trolls

Kerala, which faced the worst floods in a century, has at last begun the arduous journey of getting back to its feet. But Paytm seems to be drowning in criticism on the micro blogging site Twitter.

Like many brands, Paytm too made its platform available to patrons to donate to the relief cause, albeit with a caveat.

Paytm users trying to donate to the relief efforts in Kerala and Kodagu (Karnataka) were greeted with the message that the brand will not provide any donation receipts for claiming tax exemption against the donation made.

People did not take this kindly, with some people pointing out that the brand might itself use the amount collected to file for tax exemption.

Wow! @Paytm is not giving people receipts for donations to claim tax exemptions and the company says it'll match the amount. Does it mean that @Paytm will be able to claim that tax refund? #KeralaFloods #KeralaFloodRelief #KeralaReliefFund pic.twitter.com/fLF42nN9vf

— Mayank Jain (@Mayank1029) August 19, 2018

Apart from this, founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma is also facing flak for the donation he made in his personal capacity towards the cause. Sharma donated Rs 10,000 and shared the screenshot of the donation made. However, the twitterati found the amount too paltry.

Paytm founder @vijayshekhar Sharma, The youngest Indian billionaire with net worth of $1.7 billion did a self promotion by posting a screenshot of him donating a huge amount Rs.10000 via his @Paytm app towards #KeralaFloods. Deleted it later. pic.twitter.com/ML7GHh1Y8i

— Unofficial Sususwamy (@swamv39) August 18, 2018

But supporters of the brand pointed out that Rs 10,000 is the upper limit for any transaction on the app and that Paytm has pledged to match every donation made through the platform, penny for penny.

This is not the first time that Sharma has faced criticism for donating to a cause. Last year too, Sharma had found himself at the receiving end of online ridicule when he shared a screenshot of his contribution to the Indian Armed Forces on the occasion of the Armed Forces Week. Then, Sharma had contributed a sum of Rs 501.

Paytm is also facing customer ire over the cancellation charge that the app applies when booking movie tickets through the app. While cancelation fees are the norm on many online sites now, the option is not auto-checked. On Paytm, the option is, however, auto-checked.

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