Court Seeks Response from CCI and Swiggy in NRAI’s Petition Over Confidentiality Ring

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday issued a notice to the Competition Commission of India (CCI) and online food delivery giant Swiggy, following a petition by the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI). The NRAI is challenging its exclusion from a confidentiality ring set up by the CCI to review anti-competitive practices involving Swiggy and Zomato, while safeguarding sensitive business information.

Justice Sanjeev Narula set the matter for a hearing on January 21, 2025. A confidentiality ring allows entities under investigation to access sensitive commercial data while maintaining strict protections.

Advocate Abir Roy, representing the NRAI, argued that the association requires access to Swiggy’s confidential documents to raise objections effectively to the Director General’s (DG) report on the case. “Without access to the confidential documents, we can’t effectively raise our objections,” Roy said during the hearing.

In response, both Swiggy and the CCI opposed the NRAI’s request, citing concerns over confidentiality regulations. However, CCI’s counsel agreed to file a formal response to the petition. Roy also urged the court to expedite the matter, citing an impending deadline for filing objections. Despite this, the court scheduled the hearing for January 2025.

Previously, Swiggy filed a petition with the Karnataka High Court objecting to the CCI’s directive to provide NRAI representatives access to confidential documents. The High Court remanded the case to the CCI, instructing it to reconsider the issue.

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