Competition Commission of India

Why in news?

• Walmart's Flipkart recently filed a legal challenge against the restarting of an anti-trust probe into the company, arguing in a court filing that the investigation would cause "irreparable injury."

About Competition Commission of India:

• The Competition Commission of India is a statutory body established by the Competition Act, 2002.
• The Competition Act, 2002, as amended by the Competition (Amendment) Act, 2007, follows the philosophy of modern competition laws.
• The Act prohibits anti-competitive agreements, abuse of dominant position by enterprises and regulates combinations (acquisition, acquiring of control and M&A), which causes or likely to cause an appreciable adverse effect on competition within India.
• The objectives of the Act are sought to be achieved through the Competition Commission of India, which has been established by the Central Government with effect from 14th October 2003.
• CCI consists of a chairperson and 6 Members appointed by the Central Government.
• It is the duty of the Commission to eliminate practices having adverse effect on competition, promote and sustain competition, protect the interests of consumers and ensure freedom of trade in the markets of India.
• The Commission is also required to give opinion on competition issues on a reference received from a statutory authority established under any law and to undertake competition advocacy, create public awareness and impart training on competition issues.

Prelims Question

Regarding the Competition Commission of India (CCI), which of the following statements is/are correct?
1.The Chairperson and 6 Members of CCI appointed by the Central Government.
2.CCI is required to give opinion on competition issues on a reference received from a statutory authority established under any law
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a)1 only
(b)2 only
(c)Both 1 and 2
(d)Neither 1 nor 2

Answer to the Prelims Question