Compat quashes fine imposed on road transporters group AIMTC

The Competition Appellate Tribunal today quashed a CCI order which penalised All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC) for indulging in alleged unfair business practices with regard to truck freight rates.
In February 2015, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) had slapped a fine of Rs 14.24 lakh on AIMTC. A detailed probe by the watchdog had found that the grouping of road transporters had uniformly hiked the truck freight rates across the country on account of diesel price hike in 2012.
Quashing the order, the tribunal said the findings recorded by the additional Director General (DG) in the main as well as supplementary reports were based on pure assumption and conjectures as also misreading of the record and were not based on any tangible evidence.

DG's office, the probe arm of the regulator, had carried out the investigation.
"We further hold that the Commission committed grave error by approving the findings recorded by the additional DG and, as such, the impugned order is legally unsustainable.
"... The impugned order is set aside and the penalty imposed by the Commission on the appellant is quashed," the tribunal said in its order.
While penalising the grouping, CCI had said AIMTC members had entered into an anti-competitive agreement to fix prices in respect of freight rates charged by individual truckers.