Google approached the SC against NCLAT's refusal to grant relief against the penalty imposed by CCI on google

As a result of an order by the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) refusing to grant interim relief to Google in its appeal against a penalty imposed by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for abuse of its dominant position, Google has approached the Supreme Court for relief.

Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha heard the plea from Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi on Wednesday, stating that it had forced the company to change how it marketed its Android platform.

It has been agreed that the case will be heard on January 16, Monday, by the CJI.

In the decision under challenge, the NCLAT ruled that the CCI's order was passed in October 2022, while Google's appeal was filed only in December 2022, thus no case was made for interim relief.

As no urgency was demonstrated in filing the appeal, Google could not insist on interim relief, the tribunal ruled.

As a result of Google's urgent request for interim relief as well as a large number of records and the long order of the CCI, the Bench of Justice Rakesh Kumar and Dr. Alok Srivastava (technical) listed the matter for a final hearing on April 3.

Additionally, the NCLAT ordered Google to deposit 10% of the INR 1,137.56 crore fine.

The CCI imposed a penalty on Google in October 2022 for abusing its dominance in multiple Android markets.

Aside from imposing a monetary penalty, the CCI also ordered Google to cease participating in anti-competitive practices within a specified time frame.

Google then approached the NCLAT.