India: Cricket Board wins appeal

Competition Appellate Tribunal has set aside a CCI order against cricket governing body BCCI for alleged abuse of dominance, saying the regulator relied on “legally unsustainable” information downloaded from internet for nailing the Board.

In February of last year, the Competition Commission of India had imposed a penalty on the Board of Control for Cricket in India after finding it guilty of indulging in anti-competitive practices in organization of Indian Premier League. Stating that BCCI had abused its dominant position, the CCI had also directed it to “cease and desist” from any practice in future that denies market access to potential competitors.

December 2010 to the CCI’s Director General, the investigating arm of the fair trade regulator. During the probe, BCCI had contended that it was a ‘not-for profit’ society for the promotion of sport of cricket and its activities is outside the purview of the Competition Act. Rejecting CCI’s findings, Compat has now ruled that the the arguments given by the regulator with regard to the media agreement was “also vitiated due to breach of principles of natural justice because the same was neither referred in the order passed by it nor the DG recorded any finding qua its validity or otherwise and on this count the appellant did not get an opportunity to defend the said clause”.

“This question must be answered in negative” Compat said in a strongly worded order.”In the first place, the Secretary of the Commission has virtually admitted that the Commission relied on the so called information available in public domain without disclosing the same to the appellant.”In my view the Commission’s failure to disclose the information/material proposed to be used by it for arriving at a finding on the issue of abuse of dominance and give an opportunity to the appellant to explain/controvert the same has not only resulted in violation of the principles of natural justice but also occasioned failure of justice.”

Full Content: F. Sports

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