On May 30, 2018, CCI disposed off information filed by Parsoli Motor Works Private Limited (‘PMWPL’) against BMW India Private Limited (‘BMW India’) and BMW India Financial Services Private Limited (‘BMW Financial’) alleging an abuse of dominant position under the provisions of Section 4 of the Competition Act.PMWPL, an authorised dealer for BMW cars in Gujarat, alleged that BMW India had abused its dominant position by allowing dealers from outside Gujarat to sell cars inside the state without paying the requisite tax, thus causing financial losses to itself as well as the exchequer. Further, it was alleged that BMW India had unfairly terminated the dealership agreement of PMWPL without giving it any time to try and recoup the huge investment it had made.CCI observed that BMW India had a negligible market share in the market for ‘passenger cars in India’, which was contested by a number of players. In such a market construct, BMW India cannot be said to be a dominant player and as such the question of abuse of dominant position will not arise. With regards to the termination and non renewal of the dealership agreement, CCI observed that no case for abuse was made out since the agreement was renewed annually, and as such was anyway about to lapse due to efflux of time. Lastly, CCI opined that issues regarding non-payment of taxes were outside the purview of the Competition Act. In light of the above, CCI disposed off the information under Section 26(2) of the Competition Act.

*Case No. 11 of 2018.