Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman informed the Lok Sabha on March 24, 2025, that the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has investigated 35 cartel cases across various sectors over the last five financial years. The statement was made in response to a parliamentary question regarding competition law enforcement and cartel investigations in India.
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The CCI – being India’s primary competition watchdog is the body responsible for maintaining market integrity and ensuring fair competition under the Competition Act, 2002. Cartels are organizations that involve collusion between competitors leading to fixed prices, limited production, allocation of markets, or rig bids, thus being a major area of concern for regulatory authorities. Under Section 3 of the Competition Act, cartels are presumed to have an appreciable adverse effect on competition and are thereby subject to stringent penalties.
To enhance its enforcement capabilities, the CCI has entered into multiple Bilateral and Multilateral Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with key global regulators, including the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), the European Commission, Australia, Canada, Japan, Brazil, Egypt, Mauritius, and BRICS nations. These agreements facilitate cross-border cooperation in competition law enforcement and policy development, allowing the exchange of information and best practices.
Further, India has signed 14 Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with its global partners, many of which include a separate chapter on competition, mandating signatories to take appropriate measures against anti-competitive activities to ensure efficient trade and investment flows.
A significant amendment to India’s competition framework was introduced in the Competition (Amendment) Act, 2023, introducing the “Lesser Penalty Plus” (LPP) mechanism to incentivize cartel disclosures. Under this provision, an entity already seeking a lesser penalty for disclosing one cartel can further benefit by providing full and true disclosures about another undiscovered cartel.
The CCI (Lesser Penalty) Regulations, 2024, notified on February 20, 2024, officially replaced the 2009 regulations, strengthening incentives for whistleblowers and improving cartel detection mechanisms.
Additionally, the amendment incorporated the “Hub and Spoke” model under Section 3(3) of the Competition Act, expanding the scope of cartel investigations. The Hub and Spoke model ensured that even entities not directly engaged in similar trade may be held accountable if they facilitate or participate in anti-competitive agreements.
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Apart from enforcement actions, the CCI has been highly proactive in promoting competition awareness through advocacy initiatives. Over the course of the last five years, the CCI has conducted 1,446 advocacy programs across various sectors to educate businesses and consumers about competition laws and market fairness. Furthermore, a dedicated division within the CCI is engaged in market trend analysis to detect anti-competitive practices and ensure proactive regulatory intervention.
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The Indian Government’s recent crackdown on cartels is aligned with the global efforts to curb the vices of such anti-competitive practices. The renewed emphasis on enforcement, coupled with legislative amendments is expected to facilitate healthy competition in India’s markets. However, cartel behavior is often clandestine and difficult to detect, and hence the effectiveness of these measures shall be put to test in the coming years.
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