Competition Act

COMPETITION COMMISSION OF INDIA V. SCHOTT GLASS INDIA PVT. LTD., (2025) 13TH MAY, SUPREME COURT OF INDIA; CIVIL APPEALS 5843 & 9998 OF 2014 Akshara Gupta, 4th Year, SCHOOL OF LAW, GALGOTIAS UNIVERSITY Download Manuscript doi.org/10.70183/lijdlr.2025.v03.69 This Supreme Court ruling in CCI v. Schott Glass India Pvt. Ltd. (2025 INSC 668), passed by a division bench of Vikram Nath and Prasanna B. Varale, was with regard to charges under Section 4 of the Competition Act, 2002. Kapoor Glass India Pvt. Ltd. charged Schott India with abuse of its dominant market position by exclusionary volume and functional rebates, an anti-competitive long-term supply agreement (LTTSA) with Schott Kaisha, and tying clear and amber tubing. The Competition Commission of India (CCI) had penalized but the order was set aside by the Competition Appellate Tribunal (COMPAT) based on insufficient evidence and procedural defects. In appeal, the Supreme Court affirmed COMPAT’s conclusion. The Court underscored the importance of effects-based harm analysis in cases of abuse of dominance. It held that Schott India’s rebates were not exclusionary on equal terms and were justified by the need for operations. The LTTSA between Schott Kaisha and the LTTSA was neither exclusionary nor predatory because Schott India did not have any presence in the downstream market. Tying and NGC and NGA were denied on the grounds of technical and economic continuity of products. Most importantly, the Court denounced the refusal of cross-examination to Schott India as a travesty of natural justice. Without validated evidence, the Commission’s conclusion was not legally viable. The judgment robusts due process in competition law enforcement and conforms to international antitrust standards.