By Aditya Kalra
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Three online sellers working for Walmart-owned Flipkart have sued India’s antitrust watchdog over an investigation that found they, Flipkart and rival Amazon (NASDAQ:) violated competition laws, according to court filings seen by Reuters.
The filings come after antitrust investigations that concluded in August found that Amazon and Flipkart, and certain smartphone sellers and brands, violated local competition laws by giving undue preference to select online sellers and prioritizing certain listings, Reuters reported.
Flipkart is one of the largest e-commerce companies in India and a competitor to Amazon.
In a bid to quash the conclusive proceedings, the three sellers on the platform have filed applications with the Karnataka High Court to “quash” the investigation report and suspend the Competition Commission of India (CCI) process.
Lawsuits from Amazon and Flipkart sellers are likely to delay the investigation process that first began in 2020 and was launched after brick-and-mortar retailers complained to the All India Merchants Federation to the watchdog. Amazon and Flipkart deny any wrongdoing.
Court papers show that three Flipkart sellers — CIGFIL Retail, Wishery Online and Xonique Ventures — claim in their lawsuits that during the investigation they were called upon to provide data to help officials, but were later named as defendants, which is contrary to due process.
“The alleged investigation…is arbitrary, opaque and unfair,” Sellers said in three separate court documents, which are likely to come up for hearing next week.
Flipkart and CCI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Reuters could not immediately reach the three vendors whose orders were first reported.
Last week, a former Amazon seller also sued CCI and obtained a temporary injunction to prevent the investigation from continuing. The court filing – seen by Reuters – stated that the Chamber of Commerce and Industry had not provided notice before being made an accused in the case.