NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Monday sought the Competition Commission of India’s stand on a petition by the Basketball Federation of India to order a probe against the federation for allegedly abusing its “dominant position” and indulging in anti-competitive activities.
The High Court has sought CCI’s position on the basketball federation’s petition against the investigationJustice Purushendra Kumar Kaurav issued a notice seeking a stay on the petition as well as the federation’s order and listed it for hearing on March 10.
Claiming that a “regulator cannot be regulated”, senior advocate Vaibhav Gaggar, appearing for the petitioner, said the federation was a national sports federation and the CCI had acted beyond its jurisdiction when it directed an inquiry by the director general on November 25, 2025.
He sought a moratorium on the operation of the order, claiming it had “global implications”.
The CCI acted on the matter following a complaint by Elite Pro Basketball Pvt. It took cognizance of the “Information” dated March 11, 2024 on August 21, 2025.
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The whistleblower alleged that the federation’s “denial/denial of market access” and “restraint on players from participating in unsanctioned competition” are violations of the Competition Act.
The federation said in the petition that in 2022, the EPBL had initially shown interest in becoming an organizational partner of the professional basketball league.
However, it did not provide the requested roadmap or participate in the tender process despite specific invitations and the federation was obliged to find another organizing partner for the league, the petition added.
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The petition also stated that the federation acted as a regulator when it dealt with EPBL’s affiliation/recognition request and cautioned players against participating in unrecognized competitions and CCI cannot act as a “super-regulator” in this regard.
“The process of finding organized partners through a competitive and transparent bidding process and raising funds for the cause of sports falls within the realm of policy/regulatory decisions and is not an economic activity attracting the provisions of the Competition Act,” the petition said.
“Warning players against participating in unrecognized leagues is a regulatory and a policy decision and does not amount to an anti-competitive exclusive distribution agreement or restraint on players’ services to the extent of abuse of dominance,” it added.
The petition submitted that the CCI wrongly held that prima facie case of alleged violation of Sections 3 and 4 of the Competition Act was made out in this case and thus ordered an inquiry by the Director General.
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