SC appointed an amicus curiae for assistance in cases arising out of an National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) order and asked Competition Commission of India (CCI) to initiate probe against Flipkart.
- Amicus curiae (“friend-of-the-court”) are individuals or groups not directly involved in a legal case but have expertise to assist Courts in making its decision.
Monopolistic Practices adopted by E-Commerce platforms
- Exclusive Agreements: It involves launching a product only on a specific platform or where a platform would only list products of a certain brand in a category.
- Deep Discounts:. Forcing prices to be lower than costs leading to erosion of profitability.
- Platform Neutrality: Leveraging control over the platform in favour of their preferred vendors or private label products to the disadvantage of other sellers.
- Abuse of Dominant Position: Imposition of arbitrary terms in contracts by big platforms creates a situation where retailers are abused and exploited.
Laws that restrict Monopolistic Practices
- The Competition Act, 2002: Prohibits anti-competitive agreements, abuse of dominant position by enterprises, and regulates combinations (mergers, amalgamations and acquisitions).
- CCI has been established under this to sustain an enabling competition culture.
- Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020: Introduced by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution to regulate and protect consumers in the e-commerce sector.
