The dispute began in November 2020 when the PCC issued identical show cause notices to the PSMA and factories across the country.
Police officers walk past the Supreme Court of Pakistan building, in Islamabad, Pakistan April 6, 2022. REUTERS
ISLAMABAD:
The Supreme Court on Monday issued notices to respondents while hearing a review petition filed by the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) against an SC division court’s order in a case related to imposition of sanctions on sugar mills.
A three-member bench comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi, Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan and Justice Shakeel Ahmad heard the review petition.
During the proceedings, PCC lawyer Asma Hamid argued that the Supreme Court had referred the matter to the court rather than the commission.
She argued that the PCC had sought a modification to the SC order to allow the commission, rather than the court, to hear the matter. The CJP observed that if this was the only prayer made in the appeal, the court could pass an appropriate order.
Justice Ahmad, however, noted that the court would decide the matter only after hearing all parties. The CJP further observed that cases within the CCP remain pending for years. The court then issued notices to the parties and adjourned the hearing till next Thursday.
On September 28, 2025, an SC division bench comprising Justice Shakeel Ahmad and Justice Aamer Farooq set aside a fine of Rs 44 billion that the CCP had imposed on the country’s sugar mills.
With this order, the bench overturned both the Competition Appeal Tribunal’s order of May 21, 2025 and the CCP’s “casting vote” decision of August 13, 2021.
The dispute began in November 2020 when the PCC issued identical show cause notices to the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) and mills across the country, accusing them of violating Section 4 of the Competition Act, 2010, which prohibits cartel-like behavior.
