Rajesh George Vs Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd. (Competition Commission of India)
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) reviewed allegations brought by Rajesh George against Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd. (HMSI) under Section 19(1)(a) of the Competition Act, 2002. George alleged that HMSI abused its dominant position by coercing him to abandon his Suzuki dealership, supplying unwanted vehicle models, and arbitrarily terminating their dealership agreement. Despite raising these concerns, the Commission focused on the limitation period for filing under Section 19, noting that the alleged cause of action dated back to 2018, whereas the case was filed after the permissible three-year period.
The CCI found that George’s claims primarily arose from commercial disagreements, which do not fall under anti-competitive practices as defined by the Act. HMSI’s dealership termination was also examined and found to comply with contractual terms citing underperformance and failure to meet quality standards. The Commission concluded that the issues stemmed from business-related disputes rather than a breach of competition laws. Consequently, the case was dismissed under Section 26(2) of the Act, and no interim relief was granted.
FULL TEXT OF THE ORDER OF COMPETITION COMMISSION OF INDIA
The present Information has been filed under Section 19(1)(a) of the Competition Act, 2002 (“Act”) by Mr. Rajesh George (“Informant”) against Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Private Limited (“Opposite Party”/ “OP”/ “HMSI”) alleging contravention of the provisions of Section 4 of the Act.
