The Competition Commission of India (CCI) is a statutory body and the chief national competition regulator, established to enforce the Competition Act, 2002. It was formally established on October 14, 2003, and became fully functional in May 2009. The CCI was created to replace the outdated Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 (MRTP Act), which focused on controlling monopolies, with a modern law that promotes and sustains market competition following India's economic liberalization.
The CCI's mechanism is built on three pillars of the Competition Act, 2002: prohibiting Anti-Competitive Agreements under Section 3, prohibiting the Abuse of Dominant Position under Section 4, and regulating Combinations (mergers and acquisitions) under Sections 5 & 6. Its core duty is to eliminate practices that have an appreciable adverse effect on competition (AAEC), protect consumer interests, and ensure freedom of trade. The CCI's orders can be appealed before the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), which replaced the Competition Appellate Tribunal (COMPAT) in 2017.
The competition regime underwent a significant overhaul with the Competition (Amendment) Act, 2023. This amendment introduced a deal value threshold for combinations exceeding INR 20 billion, requiring mandatory notification even if other thresholds are not met. It also shifted the penalty calculation for anti-competitive conduct from 'relevant turnover' to 'global turnover' and reduced the maximum timeline for merger review from 210 days to 150 days. Furthermore, the amendment introduced a framework for settlements and commitments to expedite case resolution.