India’s top court has upheld its decision to continue antitrust probe of the business practices of Amazon.com and Walmart’s Flipkart.
The probe is a setback for the two e-commerce giants who had urged the court to put the proceedings on hold, a petition previously dismissed by the Karnataka high court.
Later, Amazon and Flipkart challenged the high court decision which has now been upheld by the supreme court.
As big e-commerce organisations you should volunteer for antitrust investigation but you are objecting, chief justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana said.
The CCI had last year, ordered an inquiry after allegations from brick-and-mortar retailers that the US firms promoted select sellers on their e-commerce platforms and used their business practices to stifle competition.
The companies continue to deny any wrongdoing and have repeatedly tried to mount legal blockades against the probe.
Amongst the allegations leveled against them are allegations of exclusive launches of mobile phones, promotion of select sellers on their websites and deep discounting practices that drive out competition.
Amazon is facing another CCI (the body in charge of probing anti-competition behavior in India) challenge for concealing facts and making false submissions when seeking approval for a 2019 deal with an Indian company.
Discover more from LN247
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
