Madison Media moves court to halt CCI antitrust probe

Madison Media has approached a court seeking to halt an ongoing antitrust investigation by the Competition Commission of India (CCI), arguing that its executives were questioned unlawfully during raids conducted in March without an attorney present, court documents reviewed by Reuters show.

According to the exclusive report, the agency was among several advertising agencies and broadcasters raided by the CCI on suspicion of collusion over advertising rates and discounts, marking one of the toughest regulatory actions in India’s advertising sector to date. The raids also covered global firms, including WPP’s GroupM, Dentsu, Publicis, and Omnicom.

“It is a violation of the principles of transparency, fairness, and due process,” the agency’s court filings stated, as quoted in the media report.

The CCI did not respond to the request for comment, and the agency’s spokesperson also declined to comment.

The investigation was initiated after Dentsu disclosed alleged industry malpractices in February 2024 under the watchdog’s leniency program, which allows reduced penalties for firms that cooperate and share evidence. The watchdog's preliminary findings suggested that the agencies were involved in secret pricing agreements coordinated via a WhatsApp group, according to confidential documents cited in the media report.

The case is scheduled to be heard by a judge in New Delhi on Thursday. The court could either agree to hear Madison’s plea, pause the CCI probe, or dismiss the petition.

In a related development, Publicis filed a petition in August seeking access to some investigation documents but did not request that the probe itself be quashed. The Delhi High Court has asked the watchdog to clarify its position and will hear that case on Thursday as well.

Madison has further alleged that the regulator unlawfully denied its lawyers access to key evidence forming the basis of the case. The CCI, in an August letter cited in the filings, stated that Indian law does not permit inspection of investigation records while the probe is in progress.

According to the media report, the CCI has the authority to impose fines of up to three times a company’s profit or 10% of its global turnover, whichever is higher, for each year of violation.

The watchdog has also summoned the agency’s executives, including Chairman Sam Balsara and Group CEO Vikram Sakhuja, to appear before investigators next week for further clarification. The agency is seeking to have those summons quashed, the filings said.