Top executives of FedEx, UPS, Aramex, and DHL in India will be cross-examined in the coming weeks after a group of book publishers accused them of price collusion, citing a reviewed document.
The move marks a fresh turn in an antitrust probe that had cleared the courier firms of wrongdoing last year, according to Reuters.
Allowing complainants to directly question company executives is rare in Indian antitrust proceedings.
According to legal experts and government sources, the step could alter the probe’s final outcome and extend the case by several months.
India’s courier and parcel delivery market is expected to grow 11% annually, reaching $14.3 billion by 2030, fueled by rising online shopping, according to Mordor Intelligence.
In December, Reuters reported that India’s Competition Commission had found “no evidence” of courier companies exchanging commercial information. The 2022 case, brought by the Federation of Indian Publishers, alleged that the firms colluded on prices and discounts.
The CCI has now granted the publishers’ request to cross-examine company officials, noting that investigators had relied solely on oral submissions in clearing the firms.
In a May 28 internal order reviewed by Reuters, the commission said the federation had “demonstrated sufficient cause establishing necessity and expediency” for the questioning.
Those slated for questioning include Subhasish Chakraborty, Managing Director of DTDC Express; R.S. Subramanian, Managing Director of DHL Express India; Suvendu Choudhury, Vice President of FedEx in India; Percy Avari, General Manager of Aramex in India; and Abbas Panju, Managing Director of UPS Express in India.
None of the executives responded to requests for comment.
DHL said it complies fully with the law and is “cooperating fully with the CCI,” but declined to discuss case details.
The CCI, DTDC, FedEx, UPS, Aramex, and the publishers’ federation also did not respond to queries.
The Federation of Indian Publishers represents leading Indian publishers such as S. Chand and Rupa Publications, as well as foreign publishers like Pan Macmillan.
