Islamabad, 30 July: CCP reports decline in its legal backlog, having cut it back by 40 percent, and made notable progress in recovering penalties amounting to 360 million rupees.
Since the new management assumed office in August 2023, the CCP has reduced its pending cases across courts from 567 to 344; a 40 percent decrease—by filing early hearing applications and actively pursuing litigation.
The most substantial progress was seen in the Competition Appellate Tribunal (CAT), where 121 of 210 cases were resolved, cutting backlog by 58 percent. The Lahore High Court disposed of 39 cases (78 percent), the Sindh High Court 40 cases (61 percent), the Islamabad High Court 13 cases (43 percent), and the Supreme Court decided 11 cases, while 171 related petitions were clubbed for joint hearing.
These legal resolutions enabled the CCP to recover Rs 360 million in penalties over the past year—far exceeding the total Rs 201 million collected since the Commission’s formation in 2007.
A landmark moment came with the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Dalda Foods vs CCP case, which upheld the Commission’s authority to collect information and conduct inquiries under Section 36 of the Competition Act, 2010. The court affirmed that companies must comply with CCP directives and that the Commission does not need to present detailed justifications before initiating inquiries.
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In another key ruling, the Lahore High Court supported CCP’s jurisdiction to investigate price-fixing in the poultry sector, emphasizing that show-cause notices must first go through the Commission’s adjudication process before being challenged in court.
A major catalyst for the improved pace was the revival of the Competition Appellate Tribunal under the leadership of Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, along with members Dr. Faiz Elahi Memon and Asim Akram. The tribunal resolved 121 cases, leaving only 89 pending. It delivered significant rulings, upholding fines on Reckitt Benckiser, PVMA, ICAP, and British Lyceum, while reducing penalties for companies including PREMA Milk, Diamond Paints, 3N Lifemed, and Pakistan Steel Mills.
