CCI drops Udaan’s appeal against Parle for direct access to products

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) dismissed a plea filed by Udaan against Parle Products Private Ltd that sought direct access to biscuits.

Last year, Udaan filed an antitrust case alleging abuse of dominant position in the market by Parle. In its plea, the B2B ecommerce unicorn claimed that it was facing a competitive setback due to Parle refusing to directly supply its highly-demanded products without any objective justification.

In its order, the CCI dismissed Udaan’s allegations of exclusionary practices employed by Parle. It said Udaan was unable to demonstrate any exclusionary practice on behalf of Parle under the Act. The competition watchdog also agreed with Parle’s argument that the company was free to choose its business partners.

The CCI said in its order, “As far as allegations under Section 4 of the Act are concerned, the Commission does not find any abuse, more so as the Informant (Udaan) has failed to establish any right on its part.”

The product in dispute was Parle’s highly-sought Parle-G biscuits, which Udaan claimed commanded a market share of around 83%. In response, the CCI noted that 115 out of 235 vendors from whom the retailers of Udaan could purchase on the B2B platform were Parle’s distributors.