India: Airlines to challenge competition watchdog fine

Jet Airways, IndiGo and SpiceJet on Wednesday said they would pursue legal steps against the Competition Commission of India order imposing combined penalties of Rs 258 crore on them for anti-competitive practices on air cargo.

CCI on Tuesday had penalised the three for cartelisation in determining the fuel surcharge on air cargo.

A fine of Rs 151.7 crore was imposed on Jet, while that on InterGlobe Aviation and SpiceJet were Rs 63.7 crore and Rs 42.5 crore, respectively. InterGlobe runs no-frills carrier IndiGo.

“Jet believes it is not in contravention of the Competition Act and shall pursue all available legal steps to defend its position,” the carrier said in a regulatory filing.

In a separate filing, InterGlobe Aviation said the company was studying the order and would legally challenge it.

“The company has been legally advised that it is not in contravention of the Competition Act, 2002,” it noted.

SpiceJet in a filing said, “The company is examining the order and shall be taking such steps, including challenging the order as deemed necessary.”

Full content: The Journal of Commerce

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