The case of rehearing in the highest ever penalty for price fixing and cartelisation has been delayed due to the Supreme Court’s summer holidays.
The sugar mills and the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) have requested the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) to postpone their hearing as the lawyers were on leave.
The 79 sugar mills and the PSMA reached out to the CCP to reschedule the rehearing of the case in which the Commission had imposed Rs44 bn penalty on the sugar sector for cartelisation.
The request by the PSMA for rescheduling the date stated that their legal representatives too were on holidays due to the Supreme Court’s summer recess.
The hearings were initially fixed for August 4–7, 2025, but the respondents maintained that their legal counsels were on leave as the Supreme Court was observing summer recess.
The new date of hearings are from September 22–25, 2025.
While the CCP had scheduled day-to-day hearings in line with the directions of the Competition Appellate Tribunal (CAT), it has allowed a one-time postponement in the interest of fairness and to ensure due opportunity for all parties to present their case.
The CCP has said that the Commission will not entertain further delays, and in case of non-appearance or repeated adjournment requests, ex-parte proceedings may be initiated.The CCP had imposed a penalty of Rs. 44 billion on PSMA and its member mills for cartelisation in 2021, and it was challenged by the PSMA and the mills in the Competition Appellate Tribunal (CAT).
The CCP order was later set aside by CAT on the grounds that the casting vote exercised by the then Chairperson in a 2-2 deadlock was not permissible under the Competition Act, 2010 in quasi-judicial proceedings.It was noted that the Chairperson could not cast two votes.
The Tribunal directed the CCP for a rehearing of the case and notices were issued in July 2025, to the sugar mills and the PSMA.
At the same time, after receiving the rehearing the notices around 50 sugar mills have filed an appeal in the apex court against the CAT decision.Sources in the CCP said that the mills and other sectors have filed cases in the Supreme Court against the establishment of the CCP- claiming that the responsibilities of the Commission were devolved subject under the 18th Constitutional Amendment.
Where the supreme court verdict in this regard is expected in the first week of September.
That is why the new hearing date in the sugar mills case has been scheduled after September 20. Ends
