The Centre for Competition Law & Policy (CCLP) under the aegis of Institute of Legal Studies & Research (ILSR) organised a Panel Discussion on the 'Future of Indian Competition Law' on May 7, 2022 as a part of the Lecture series initiative.

The Panelist comprised the following:

1. Ms. Geeta Gouri, Former Member, Competition Commission of India, Govt. of India

2. Mr. Neil Hildreth, Partner, Lumiere Law Partners, New Delhi

3. Ms. Soumya Hariharan, Former Partner, Trilegal, Mumbai

The session began with a welcome address from Prof. (Dr.) Avinash Dadhich, Director, CCLP

The session was moderated by Ms. Nidhi Singh, Deputy Director, CCLP.

Outcomes of the Webinar:

1. The Indian Competition Regime is primarily influenced by enforcement cum advocacy measures of competition regulator, finality of jurisprudence laid down by the Honourable Supreme Court and also by the policies and changes effected therein by the Government to drive and thrive competition in existing and upcoming markets.

2. Recognising the adverse impact on businesses especially the Micro Small, Medium Enterprises, the Competition Commission of India has adopted varying approaches i.e., either it levied no penalty and passed cease orders or imposed token penalties.

3. Competition forces existing players to innovate and enhance quality of products at lower costs.

4. Realising that competition and innovation are intertwined, the Government has accorded priority to 'Innovation" as an engine of economic growth in the Indian Economy.

5. There should be an overarching legal framework to provide common guidelines for the establishment of market-regulatory agencies (i.e. competition authority and sector regulators.

6. The Competition bill placed before the legislature is a way forward to achieving the same.

7. Prepare and adopt a National Competition Policy to hasten and complete the process of liberalisation and deregulation.

The session was coordinated by Ms. Nidhi Singh, Deepali Bagla (Research Fellow, CCLP) and Saniya Khanna (Research Intern)