CCI probe can’t be stalled

When the Competition Commission of India (CCI) forms a prima facie opinion that certain firms have formed a cartel and asks its director general to probe the allegation, it is an administrative decision. It is a direction to one of its departments and does not involve adjudicatory function. The firms against which the probe is being conducted has no right to inspect documents and evidence against them at that stage, the Delhi High Court ruled last week in the appeals of Premier Rubber Mills and Somi Conveyor Beltings Ltd. In these cases, the commission, on its own, ordered a probe by the director general as it felt the firms had been indulging in a bid-rigging cartel in the market for conveyor belts and exchanged commercial and confidential price sensitive information among themselves prior to submission of bids. The firms told the high court their application for permission to inspect documents and get certified copies was rejected on the ground of confidentiality. Their right to defend themselves had been arbitrarily denied, they argued. They also challenged the regulations related to the investigation. The high court rejected all their contentions and allowed the investigation by the director general to proceed.