New Delhi, December 11, 2025 — India’s Competition Commission of India (CCI) has found that three liquor trade associations in Maharashtra engaged in anticompetitive conduct by fixing retail margins and imposing collective conditions on the launch of alcoholic beverage products.
The authority issued a cease and desist order but stopped short of imposing monetary penalties, citing mitigating factors.
The case targeted the Maharashtra Wine Merchants Association, the Pune District Wine Merchants Association, and the Association of Progressive Liquor Vendors, which the CCI concluded coordinated pricing terms, discounts, credit conditions, and transportation charges through so-called letters of introduction and no-objection certificates required for new product launches.
According to the decision, the associations collectively required manufacturers of alcoholic beverages to obtain approvals before introducing new products and to adhere to uniform retail margins, launch schemes, and mandatory fees. The conduct was found to amount to price fixing and market access restrictions in violation of Section 3 of India’s Competition Act.
The CCI rejected arguments that the practices were merely advisory or pro-competitive. It held that collective determination of margins and launch conditions eliminated independent commercial decision-making by retailers and manufacturers and restricted competition by object.
The commission also found several office bearers of the associations personally liable under India’s competition law for their role in the conduct, while proceedings against one individual were closed due to a lack of evidence.
Despite establishing the infringement, the CCI declined to impose fines, citing mitigating factors including the non-commercial nature of the associations, their status as first-time offenders, and commitments to discontinue the conduct. Instead, it issued a cease-and-desist order warning that any recurrence would be treated as aggravated recidivism.
The ruling reinforces the CCI’s long-standing position that trade associations may represent member interests but cross the line when they coordinate prices, margins or market access conditions that should be set independently by competing firms.
Source: https://www.cci.gov.in/antitrust/orders/details/1215/0
