Appellate Tribunal Upholds Penalty for Bid Rigging in Soil Testing Tenders, Reduces Fine for Minor Role in Collusion.

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, New Delhi, dealt with a case involving cartelization and bid-rigging in tenders for soil sample testing by the Department of Agriculture, Government of Uttar Pradesh. The Opposite Parties were found to have engaged in bid rigging, collusive bidding, and market sharing, contravening Sections 3(3)(c) and 3(3)(d) u/s 3(1) of the Competition Act, 2002. The Commission determined that collusion occurred among specific bidders, leading to manipulation of the bidding process. The Commission imposed a penalty u/s 27(b) not exceeding 10% of the average turnover for the last three years on the contravening parties. The penalty was reduced to 3% for the appellant, considering their supporting role in the cartel. The order holding the appellant guilty was upheld, with modifications to the penalty amount. The application was disposed of accordingly.....