Flipkart urges HC to quash anti-trust probe

Days after the Karnataka High Court ordered a stay on the anti-trust probe on ecommerce majors Amazon and Flipkart, Walmart backed Flipkart has moved the court urging it to set aside the probe.

In its writ petition, Flipkart Internet Private Ltd said that although the High Court has ordered a stay on the investigation, the probe order of Competition Commission of India (CCI) "deserves to be set aside".

"The Impugned Order has directed an investigation without making a determination of the existence of an essential jurisdiction fact i.e. the existence of a 'prima facie' case," said the petition dated February 18. It further said that the order was passed in a pre-determined manner, by treating allegation of abuse of dominance as an anti-competitive agreement.

In its petition, Flipkart questioned the "bona fides" of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), which has been protesting against what it calls "deep discounts" by the e-commerce majors and reached out to the CCI and the government against them.

"The CCI is duty bound to act with caution, especially, in assessing the bona fides of the informant. In this, the petitioner submits that Confederation of All India Traders has repeatedly indulged in forum shopping against the petitioner by approaching various judicial forums, directly and through its sister entities raising exactly the same baseless allegations against the petitioner," it said.