Ruling in Dhanraj Pillay & Ors v M/s Hockey India, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) recently directed Hockey India to split its regulatory and commercial functions, even as it found no evidence that Hockey India was abusing its dominance in the market for the services of hockey players.
Hockey India governs and conducts hockey activities in the country and the CCI held that the possible conflict of interest between its “regulatory and organizing of events roles” raised certain potential competition concerns.
[ihc-hide-content ihc_mb_type=”show” ihc_mb_who=”3″ ihc_mb_template=”2″ ]
The CCI was acting on a complaint filed by Dhanraj Pillay, a former captain of India’s hockey team. Pillay alleged that Hockey India imposed restrictive conditions on players who wanted to participate in unsanctioned private professional leagues and that this resulted in undue restrictions on their mobility, which in turn led to a denial of entry to prospective private professional leagues.
Taking note of its responsibility “to promote and sustain competition and protect the interests of consumers”, the CCI directed Hockey India to put in place systems to ensure that it does not use its regulatory powers in any way while considering and deciding on matters relating to its commercial activities. The CCI also directed Hockey India to set up a streamlined fair and transparent system of issuing no objection certificates to players for participating in events organized by foreign teams and clubs.
The CCI said that given Hockey India’s dual role of regulator and organizer “the possibility of transgression of the lines shall always remain there”. As a result, the CCI said that in light of its responsibilities under the Competition Act, it would consider any new facts as and when they were brought to its notice and act accordingly.
[/ihc-hide-content]
The update of court judgments is compiled by Bhasin & Co, Advocates, a corporate law firm based in New Delhi. The authors can be contacted at lbhasin@bhasinco.in or lbhasin@gmail.com. Readers should not act on the basis of this information without seeking professional legal advice.
