CCI orders probe into Mrs India Inc for alleged breach of competition rules
Finding a prima facie case of violation of various Competition Act provisions, the regulator, in an order on Tuesday, asked the director general to investigate the matter and submit a report within 90 days.
The complainant, who was the runner-up of Miss India Inc.’s ‘Miss India’ beauty pageant, accused the organizer of allegedly signing agreements containing immoral terms and restricting her career advancement through various terms and conditions included in such agreements.
She alleged that the organizer also made significant payments to her without prior notice and restricted the winners from participating in the beauty pageant or related professional activities for up to five years.
Mrs India Inc, a sole proprietorship firm, holds the exclusive license to the world’s leading and oldest international beauty pageants, including Mrs World, Mrs Globe, Mrs Earth, Mrs Galaxy and Mrs International Summit, to order.
From a bare reading of the impugned agreements that Miss India Inc. had made its participants and winners sign, it is clear that “the same contained some onerous terms”, the CCI said in its order.
These include a requirement that winners and runners-up up to 25th place be bound by the terms and conditions of the agreements for a period of five years, which will be considered a “cooling off period”. Similarly, the organizer, among other conditions, bans the participants and winners from participating in any other beauty contest as a participant, Consultant, jury, mentor, founder or co-founder for five years.
While asking its director general to investigate, the regulator also said: “Nothing contained in this order shall amount to a final expression of opinion on the merits of the case and the director general will conduct the investigation uninfluenced in any way by the observations made therein.”
In a separate statement, CCI said it has approved the proposed merger for the restructuring of the UPL group of companies and others.
