Airtel drags Reliance Jio to Competition Commission

India's largest private sector telecom company Bharti Airtel has reportedly filed a counter-case with Competition Commission of India (CCI) against Reliance Jio. 

Media reports stated that Airtel filed a counter complaint accusing Jio of “abusing dominant position” and “predatory pricing” with intention to kill competition.

Earlier, telecom regulator Trai rejected claims and petitions from telecom companies asking a clamp down on Jio's free data offers.

Airtel, along with Idea, moved Telecom Disputes Settlement Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT)  stating that Trai has not been responding properly on the gross violations committed by Reliance Jio. 

In the third quarter ended December 31, 2016 Bharti Airtel's  net profit dropped by  55%, at Rs 503.7 crore as against Rs 1,108 crore in the same period of last year.

Airtel said that price war with Reliance Jio has hurt business. It said, "India revenues for Q3’17 at Rs 18,013 crore grew by 1.8% Y-o-Y. Slowdown in Mobile revenue growth primarily due to free voice and data offering by a new operator."

Gopal Vittal, MD and CEO, India & South Asia, said: “The quarter has seen turbulence due to the continued predatory pricing by a new operator."

In the month of November 2016, Jio had also filed a complaint before CCI against its rival over point of interconnection (POI). That time, CCI had asked its director-general (investigation) to investigate the matter.