Lahore, October 31, 2025 – The Lahore High Court (LHC) has dismissed a petition filed by Honda Atlas Cars (Pakistan) Limited against the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP), affirming the regulator’s legal powers to collect information and investigate potential anti-competitive practices in the country’s automobile industry.
In a detailed judgment, Justice Raheel Kamran ruled that the CCP possesses clear authority under Sections 36 and 37 of the Competition Act, 2010 to seek data, evaluate market conduct, and probe monopolistic or unfair business behavior. The verdict, released on Friday, strengthens the CCP’s mandate to ensure transparency and competition in key sectors of the economy.
The court noted that Honda Atlas had initially cooperated with the CCP inquiry before later challenging its jurisdiction — an attempt the court described as a tactic to delay the investigation. The inquiry, launched in November 2018, centered on complaints of on-money payments, delayed vehicle deliveries, and post-booking price hikes.
Between 2018 and 2022, the CCP issued multiple notices requesting production, pricing, and dealer-related data, but Honda Atlas repeatedly sought extensions and failed to provide complete information, despite inquiry team visits in 2019 and 2021. The company later obtained a stay order from the LHC in June 2023, stalling the case for nearly three years.
Justice Kamran rejected the argument that the CCP’s jurisdiction lapsed after the 18th Amendment, declaring the Competition Act a federal law applicable nationwide. Citing the Supreme Court’s Dalda Foods case (PLD 2023 SC 1991), he stressed that providing information to the CCP is a statutory obligation, not an infringement of corporate rights.
While dismissing the petition as “devoid of merit,” the LHC directed the CCP to conclude its long-pending investigation within six months, marking a significant victory for regulatory oversight in Pakistan’s auto industry.