Despite the fact that the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has sharper teeth than its predecessor, MRTPC, it is yet to give its verdict on even one of the 30 cases pending in its offices. by Gyanendra Kumar Kashyap
Sample the list of cases pending with the CCI since its inception: a complaint against many banking and financing firms et al for penalty on prepayment of loans, alleged cartelisation between DTH TV service providers Tata Sky, Reliance Big TV, Dish TV and Sun TV, complaint against North Delhi Power Ltd, BSES Rajdhani Power, BSES Yamuna Power on installation of electric meters, complaint against Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines related to code-sharing agreement (an alleged cartel). Yes, CCI has passed one interim order (initiating investigations against SAIL due to a complaint by Jindal Steel), but that too was stopped by the Competition Appellate Tribunal. CCI, instead of resolving the other cases, took its own tribunal to court.
The argument that CCI is a new regulator and will take more time than expected to dispose off the first file, does not hold water, given that’s it’s a standard excuse quite often peddled by many other bureaucratic agencies. Grapevine has it that amidst mounting criticism, the CCI is planning to resolve at least four pending cases in the next one month, one amongst them pertaining to banks charging pre-penalty from customers who foreclose a loan. The question is not whether CCI would rule for or against the companies (An official from HDFC Bank, while respecting the CCI’s intervention, tells B&E, “Prepayment leads to asset-liability mismatch and thus necessitates prepayment penalty”), but the question is, will the process even start? Considering the fact that the jurisdiction of the commission extends to the entire economy, it is imperative that the government pushes the CCI harder, so that it can promote efficiency and consumer welfare. We’ve seen too many decades of a less than useful MRTPC. Let’s not have many more being added by CCI.
The argument that CCI is a new regulator and will take more time than expected to dispose off the first file, does not hold water, given that’s it’s a standard excuse quite often peddled by many other bureaucratic agencies. Grapevine has it that amidst mounting criticism, the CCI is planning to resolve at least four pending cases in the next one month, one amongst them pertaining to banks charging pre-penalty from customers who foreclose a loan. The question is not whether CCI would rule for or against the companies (An official from HDFC Bank, while respecting the CCI’s intervention, tells B&E, “Prepayment leads to asset-liability mismatch and thus necessitates prepayment penalty”), but the question is, will the process even start? Considering the fact that the jurisdiction of the commission extends to the entire economy, it is imperative that the government pushes the CCI harder, so that it can promote efficiency and consumer welfare. We’ve seen too many decades of a less than useful MRTPC. Let’s not have many more being added by CCI.
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
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An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri's Website
domain-b.com : IIPM ranked ahead of IIMs
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine
IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM's Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM B-School Detail
