The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has made significant progress in its ongoing battle against cartelism, successfully recovering penalties amounting to Rs 32 million.
According to a press release issued here, this recovery is a testament to the CCP’s commitment to upholding competition laws and ensuring that entities engaged in anti-competitive practices are held accountable.
The Competition Appellate Tribunal (CAT) has played a crucial role by upholding CCP’s decisions thus facilitating the enforcement. Up to July 2024, the CAT has dismissed 26 cases in favor of the CCP, while the Lahore High Court and the Islamabad High Court have dismissed five and one case, respectively. These cases involved cartels, abuse of dominant position, and deceptive marketing practices.
By rejecting appeals against the CCP’s orders and upholding the penalties imposed, the CAT has bolstered the CCP’s authority and ensured accountability for entities engaging in anti-competitive practices.
Over the past years, the CCP has imposed cumulative penalties amounting to approximately Rs 74 billion in cases related to various sectors including sugar, cement, cooking oil and ghee, poultry, automobile (including tractors), paint, lubricants, real estate, steel, fast-moving consumer goods, milk, food and beverages, electronic goods, glass, and e-commerce, with.
However, the actual collection of these penalties has faced legal hurdles, delaying justice and enforcement.
It said that the appointment of new management under the leadership of Chairman CCP, Dr. Kabir Ahmed Sidhu, marked a turning point in the CCP’s approach to enforcing competition laws.
“Bringing on board a renewed focus on diligently pursuing pending court cases and enforcing penalties. Key strategic actions included establishing a dedicated Market Intelligence Unit (MIU), strengthening the CCP’s legal team, enhancing coordination with judicial authorities, and prioritizing cases with significant public interest. These concerted efforts have resulted in efficiently policing cartels leading to successful recovery of penalties,” CCP added.
The CCP aims to further strengthen its enforcement capabilities and continue to pursue pending cases with vigor. With the commitment to fighting cartels and identifying ‘smoking guns’, the CCP remains unweathered, with the mandate of promoting competition in all spheres of commercial and economic activities.
