Karnataka High Court directs Competition Commission of India to decide on Swiggy Limited's objection on sharing of its confidential information
Karnataka High Court ("KHC") set aside the order, passed by Competition Commission of India ("CCI") whereby it set up a confidentiality ring and allowed the representatives of National Restaurant Association of India ("NRAI") to access the confidential information of Swiggy Limited ("Swiggy").
Brief Background
On April 4, 2022, CCI ordered an investigation against Swiggy and Zomato Limited for indulging in certain activities in contravention of Section 3(4) of the Competition Act, 2002 ("Competition Act"). For a summary of the CCI order, refer to JSA Competition Law Newsletter for April 2022.
Upon completing of the investigation, on April 24, 2024, CCI allowed the application filed by Swiggy and NRAI to set up the confidentiality ring to access confidential documents including the confidential version of the investigation report ("CCI Order").
Proceedings before KHC
Aggrieved, Swiggy filed a writ petition before KHC challenging the CCI Order on the ground that the disclosure of its confidential information to representatives of NRAI would cause irreparable harm to Swiggy. For a summary of the media update, refer to JSA Competition Law Newsletter for May 2024.
KHC, without expressing an opinion on the merits, set aside the CCI Order and remitted the matter to CCI to expeditiously reconsider the applications filed by Swiggy and NRAI after giving them an opportunity of hearing.
(Source: KHC Judgment June 26, 2024)
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