Competition Commission of India (CCI)
After the Competition Act,2002 came into existence a Competition Commission of India (CCI) and Competition Appellate Tribunal (CAT) was established. This commission was preceded by Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission
The CCI is composed of as Chairperson and 6 members, these members are appointed by the Central Government. The CCI acts as a market regulator to check on the ill competitive practices in India. The headquarters of this commission is currently in New Delhi.
The Competition Appellate Tribunal was formed in 2009 and is a fully empowered body by the Constitution of India. The final appeal after this tribunal can be made in the Supreme Court of India.
When there is more and more competition in the market the focus will shift from maximum profit to innovation and higher quality to attract customers to their business objective.
Objective of Competition Commission of India(CCI)
- Remove negative competitive practices
- Promote sustainable market competition
- Protect the rights of the consumer
- Protect the freedom of trade in Indian markets
- Protect the rights of small traders from the large traders to ensure their survival
- Advice and give suggestions to Competition Appellate Tribunal
- Run informative campaigns and create public awareness about fair competitive practices.
What is the Competition Law
Competition is an economic rivalry between various market parties to attract business towards them. It is a condition where the parties strive to attract more and more customers to themselves to achieve their business objective,
Competition law is a specific law which was passed in 2002 and called The Competition Act. It aims at promoting sustainable competition between the various market parties and protect the interests of customers. It also ensures that the freedom to carry out a trade by each party in the market is maintained.
In India laws like Monopolies and Restrictive Practices Act, 1969 existed but these laws became outdated once the Indian economy was opened up in 1991.
A body called the Competition Commission of India (CCI) and Competition Appellate Tribunal were formed as per the provisions of this law to ensure safe and fair market practices in the open market. The Competition Appellate Tribunal’s main aim was to dispose of cases related to unfair market practices after a legal hearing.
The initial act of 2002 was amended in 2007 and then again in 2009 by the Competition (Amendment) Act and Competition (Amendment) Act respectively to make this act more effective.
Segments Of Competition Act/Law
There are three major segments of a competition law; as follows
Anti – competitive agreements
These are those agreements which restrict competition. Such agreements can be between producer and the distributer, producer and the supplier.
These agreements directly or indirectly control the prices of products and services in the market. They may lead to bidding rigging.
Abuse of dominance
This part prevents the parties to abuse their dominant status in the market. Such dominant status includes position of power and strength. A dominant party has the power and resources to control the process of any goods/services without even needing to consult its rivals.
Merger, amalgamations and acquisitions control
This part of the Competition Act covers the acquisition of control, shares, voting rights and assets, and mergers and amalgamations. It ensures that no acquisition or amalgamation occurs which may likely have an adverse effect on the other competitors in the market. There are many factors in it which need to be considered to decide the violation of it.
