Commitment (Sec 48B)

A negotiated exit, midway through investigation

Commitment is one of the two negotiated routes the Competition (Amendment) Act, 2023 added to Indian competition enforcement. Before the Amendment, an investigation ran its full course to a final order, however willing the enterprise was to fix the problem. Section 48B changes that: while the Director General is still investigating, the enterprise under investigation may offer commitments — practical changes to its agreements, pricing, distribution or business practices — that answer the concerns the CCI has raised.

What it covers, and what it does not

Commitment is available in proceedings concerning Section 3 agreements other than cartels, and Section 4 abuse of dominance. Cartels are expressly excluded: a cartel member cannot buy its way out with commitments and must use the leniency route under Section 46 instead. The exclusion is deliberate. Cartels are treated as the gravest violation, and the Act reserves negotiated exits for conduct where a forward-looking remedy can genuinely restore competition.

How it works

The enterprise submits its proposed commitments to the CCI while the investigation is pending and before the Director General's report is filed. The CCI examines whether the offer addresses its concerns, and invites objections and suggestions from the parties concerned before deciding. The CCI (Commitment) Regulations, 2024 lay down the procedure for filing, considering and accepting commitments. If the CCI accepts, it passes an order recording the commitments, and the proceedings on those issues come to an end. The enterprise is then bound to honour what it offered.

If commitments are not honoured

Acceptance is not a free pass. If the enterprise fails to comply with accepted commitments, the CCI may revoke the order and resume proceedings, and the case proceeds as if no commitment had been offered. The enterprise therefore trades a contested final order — with the possibility of a heavy penalty — for a binding obligation to change its conduct, and it must live with that bargain.

Commitment versus settlement

Commitment and settlement are siblings, not twins. Commitment comes early, during investigation and before the Director General's report. Settlement, under Section 48A, comes later, after the report is filed but before the CCI's final order, and typically involves a settlement amount. Both routes let enterprises resolve proceedings without a contested final order, but they operate at different stages and on different terms. The table below keeps the distinction straight.

Why it matters

For enterprises, commitment is a way to stop the bleeding early: to fix the conduct, avoid a penalty order, and move on. For the market, it delivers remedies faster than a full contested case, which can take years. For practitioners, it changes investigation strategy entirely — the question is no longer only whether the enterprise can win, but whether an early, credible remedy serves it better than fighting to the end.

Questions readers ask

Does offering commitments mean admitting guilt? No. Acceptance of commitments is not a finding that the enterprise contravened the Act. It records the agreed remedy and closes the proceedings on those issues, without a contested determination of violation. Who can object to proposed commitments? The CCI invites objections and suggestions from the parties concerned before accepting, so affected competitors, customers or other stakeholders can point out gaps in the proposed remedy. Is there a hard deadline? Yes — the offer must come during investigation and before the Director General's report is filed. Once the report is in, the commitment window closes and only settlement remains.

The position today

The Commitment Regulations, 2024 are in force, and commitment is now a standard part of investigation strategy for non-cartel conduct. An enterprise that receives a CCI investigation notice weighs, from the start, whether an early remedy offer serves it better than contesting the case to a final order. The route is still young, and the CCI's approach to the adequacy of offered commitments is developing case by case — but the direction is clear: negotiated remedies are now a permanent feature of Indian competition enforcement.