HC refuses to halt CCI probe against Amazon, Flipkart

BENGALURU: The Karnataka high court (HC) on Friday quashed separate petitions by Amazon India and Flipkart against the investigation by antitrust Competition Commission of India (CCI) into alleged anticompetitive practices.

“The appeals are devoid of merit, and deserve to be dismissed,” said a two-judge bench of Justices Satish Chandra Sharma and Nataraj Rangaswamy.

A single-judge bench at the Karnataka HC on June 11 had dismissed a writ petition by the two e-commerce giants challenging the CCI probe into their business practices, ordered in January 2020.

The following week, the companies filed separate with a division bench at the Karnataka HC, challenging the earlier decision, and arguing that the case wasn’t heard on merit.

On Friday, the division bench said that if the appellants are not involved in any violation, they shouldn’t feel shy about an investigation by CCI.

Amazon India and Walmartowned Flipkart are now expected to move the Supreme Court to challenge the order and request a stay on the CCI investigation, said two individuals aware of the plans.

“We are waiting to receive a copy of the order of the division bench of the Karnataka high court and will review it as soon as we get it. As highlighted earlier, we have a very robust compliance and governance process, and remain in full compliance with Indian laws,” a Flipkart Group spokesperson told Mint.

“We respect the judgement passed by hon’ble high court and we will review the judgement in detail to determine any next steps,” an Amazon spokesperson told Mint on Friday.