An Amazon storage facility on the outskirts of Mumbai. — Reuters file
India's antitrust body has requested the Supreme Court to consider legal challenges against an investigation into Amazon and Walmart's Flipkart e-commerce platforms. The Competition Commission of India (CCI) claims that these challenges, filed by Samsung, Vivo, and others at Indian high courts, are intended to obstruct the probe. In a filing on December 3, reviewed by Reuters and not publicly released, the CCI asked the court to hear 23 challenges, filed by Samsung, Vivo, and several vendors on the Amazon and Flipkart platforms, to expedite the case's resolution. Amazon declined to comment, while Flipkart, Samsung, Vivo, and the CCI did not respond to requests for comment. The investigation represents a significant regulatory hurdle for Amazon and Flipkart in a market where e-commerce sales are projected to surpass $160 billion by 2028, up from $57 billion to $60 billion in 2023.
A Flipkart fulfilment centre on the outskirts of Bengaluru. — AFP file
The CCI's investigation unit concluded in August that Amazon and Flipkart violated India's antitrust laws by favoring certain sellers on their websites. It also found that smartphone companies like Samsung and Vivo broke these laws by colluding with the two e-commerce giants to exclusively launch products online. Since the findings, nearly two dozen lawsuits across five Indian high courts have been filed by some Amazon and Flipkart vendors, as well as by Samsung and Vivo, to halt the investigation, aiming to 'debilitate and scuttle' the process, according to the CCI. The separate lawsuits, if allowed, 'will lead to absurdity since it will interfere with the flexibility of the (CCI's) Director General to carry out investigation in any matter.'
Amazon and Flipkart have faced criticism from smaller retailers for years over their business practices, claiming they have suffered due to deep discounts and preferential treatment by the platforms. Amazon and Flipkart deny any wrongdoing. A Reuters investigation in 2021, based on Amazon internal documents, revealed that the company gave preferential treatment for years to a small group of sellers and used them to bypass Indian laws. The current CCI investigation began in 2020 but has faced numerous delays. Most of the 23 lawsuits filed across India in the latest challenge to the case allege that the CCI did not follow due process during its investigation. The CCI's filing requesting the transfer of the 23 cases to the Supreme Court is expected to be heard this week, according to a lawyer familiar with the proceedings.
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