Recently, India has responded to globalization by opening up its economy, removing
controls and resorting to liberalization. For this, it is necessary that the Indian market
should prepare itself to face competition from within the country and outside. The
Monopolistic and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 became obsolete in certain respects
in the light of international economic developments relating more particularly to
competition laws. Accordingly, the Competition Act, 2002 was passed. The Competition
Act, 2002 has repealed the MRTP Act, 1969, and provides for the dissolution of the
MRTP Commission. The Act seeks to ensure fair competition in India by prohibiting
trade practices which cause appreciable adverse effect on competition in markets in
India with a view to promoting and sustaining competition in market, to protect the
interests of the consumers1 and to ensure freedom of trade carried on by other participants
in markets in India. For this purpose, the Act provides for the establishment of a quasijudicial
body to be called the Competition Commission of India (CCI). The CCI shall
also undertake competition advocacy for creating awareness and imparting training on
competition issues. The Act provides the provisions of ‘prohibition of anti-competitive
agreements’2, ‘prohibition of abuse of dominant position’3, ‘regulation of combinations’4
and the ‘establishment of Competition Commission of India’5 to promote and sustain
competition in market and also to protect the interest of the consumers.
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