Supreme Court Remands Flipkart Competition Case for Fresh Adjudication

The Supreme Court has set aside a 2020 NCLAT order that directed an investigation into Flipkart for alleged competition law violations. The case is remanded back to the NCLAT for reconsideration, taking into account that prior income tax findings against Flipkart were overturned and that it was not deemed dominant in the market.

The Supreme Court has overturned a 2020 directive from the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), which called for an investigation into alleged competition law breaches by e-commerce titan Flipkart.

The case has been sent back to the NCLAT for fresh consideration. The Supreme Court bench, led by Chief Justice Surya Kant, highlighted the need to revisit the case due to previously overturned income tax findings against Flipkart. The e-commerce platform had contested the NCLAT's reliance on these findings, which were nullified by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT).

The apex court clarified that all issues remain open for NCLAT's re-evaluation, advising that attention should be given to principles established in previous rulings. The matter originated when the NCLAT annulled a CCI decision that had closed a complaint against Flipkart, citing a prima facie case for abuse of dominance. Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi argued that Flipkart was not a dominant player, noting that the CCI had found otherwise and that Amazon was the online market leader.

(With inputs from agencies.)