Enterprises need to identify risks that could lead to violation of competition law, said CCI chairman Ashok Chawla.

He was speaking at a conference organised by Institute of Company Secretaries of India on Friday.

“Competition law applies to all enterprises...it is ownership neutral and size neutral. It applies to all sectors,” Chawla said.

He added that enterprises should look at effective compliance programmes to identify risks that could lead to violation of fair trade norms. He emphasized on reflective compliance programme that should present any violation; promote culture of competition; promote good corporate citizenship.

“Many businesses, both domestic and multinational companies, have initiated robust compliance programmes,” Chawla said.

There are internal as well as external challenges in implementation of the competition law. It includes capacity building, he added.

“The fundamental objective of Competition Law is to promote and sustain market competition as its rationale lies in the proposition that competition yields social benefits and therefore needs to be nurtured. The process of competition is, however, not automatic, as vested interest groups, incumbent monopolistic firms, collusive businesses and other stakeholders may distort the process of competition or capture the benefits of market-oriented economic reforms,” Chawla said.

CS R. Sridharan, President, The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) in his presidential address added, “Developing countries such as India face unique challenges in the enforcement of competition law. The problems of under development, institutional design and government regulation are some real-world challenges that have to be recognised for the successful implementation of an antitrust regime.”

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