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The Supreme Court (SC) has ordered a stay on the Competition Commission of India's (CCI) order asking Amazon to pay a penalty of Rs 202 crore for buying a 49 per cent stake in a Future Group entity in 2019, a report published in The Economic Times (ET) has said.
Justice Dinesh Maheshwari chaired the SC bench in the case, taking note of the totality of the situation, he ordered, “It is considered appropriate and hence provided that no coercive steps shall be taken in relation to the notice dated April 25 against the appellant (Amazon) until the next date of hearing on July 17."
At first, the CCI had approved Amazon's 49 per cent acquisition of Future Coupons (FCPL). However, upon a review of the matter, allegations were made against Amazon and it was found that information was concealed while seeking a regulatory nod for the deal.
This resulted in CCI slapping a Rs 202 crore penalty on the e-commerce firm for its inability to come clean on the actual scope and the purpose of the deal.
The order directed Amazon to pay the penalty amount by mid-February 2022. The penalties were imposed in two parts in accordance with separate sections of the law. Rs 200 crore and Rs 2 crore were thus imposed on Amazon.
The Future Group and Amazon have locked horns in courts since October 2020. It started when Singapore's Emergency Arbitrator ordered FRL which restrained it from going ahead with its deal with Reliance Retail, the ET report said.
