Stakeholders can submit their comments on the draft regulations from August 24 to September 13.
Fair trade regulator CCI on Wednesday issued the draft regulations for commitment and settlement provisions under the competition law.
The provisions, introduced in the Competition Act through the amendments made earlier this year, are aimed at ensuring quicker market correction, according to the Competition Commission of India (CCI).
The commitment mechanism will enable an enterprise against whom an inquiry is on for alleged contravention of the competition law to offer commitments before CCI. Similarly, the settlement mechanism will allow such enterprises to apply for settlement before the regulator.
The regulations for commitment and settlement provisions would cover the procedures, the factors to consider and period during which commitment and settlement can be offered.
“The intent of creating a procedure for commitment is driven by the need to ensure quicker market correction,”
the regulator said.
The institution of commitments in antitrust cases exists in many countries. Most often, the conclusion of an agreement on the defendant's acceptance of commitments allows the antimonopoly authority to terminate the case without making conclusions on the violation.
For instance, in July 2023, Amazon offered commitments to the British regulator CMA. This proposal was made in the course of the regulator's investigation into possible abuse of dominant position by the company. If the CMA accepts Amazon's commitments, the investigation will be closed without an antitrust violation.
In Russia, the right for transaction applicants to declare their commitments to ensure competition in the market was established by the Fifth Antimonopoly Package adopted in July 2023. The mechanism of commitments has been used before, when, at the suggestion of the FAS, retailers undertook tolimit markups to no more than 5% of the purchase price for certain socially important goods. Thus, by August 2023, about 30 retail chains from 25 regions of Russia had made this commitment.
Source: Financial Express
