India: Appellate court stays CCI’s penalty on airlines

In a major relief to Jet Airways, SpiceJet and IndiGo, the Competition Appellate Tribunal Monday set aside a fine of Rs 258 crore imposed on the three airlines last December for acting like a cartel and “overcharging cargo freight in the garb of fuel surcharge.”

Hearing the airlines’ appeal against that order of the Competition Commission of India, justice G S Singhvi said, “The appeals have been allowed.”
The case has been referred back to CCI for probing suspected cartelization by airlines in fixing fuel surcharges.

The CCI order had come on a complaint filed by Express Industry Council of India which had also also named Air India and GoAir, apart from the three airlines. The fair trade regulator did not find AI and GoAir guilty.

“The basic concern in the present case is the overcharging of cargo freight, in the garb of fuel surcharge, by the air cargo transport operators which adversely affect consumers beside stifling economic development of the country. Such cartels in the air cargo industry particularly undermine economic development in a developing country,” the CCI order had said.

Full Content: Times of India

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