Judges Narain and Jugessur-Manna of the Supreme Court have ordered that the Minister of Commerce and Consumer Protection, Dorine Chukowry, be joined as a Co-Respondent in an ongoing dispute between Agiliss, a company led by Rajesh and Sharon Ramdenee, and the Competition Commission. The case revolves around the importation of oil.
The Competition Commission had compiled a report in August 2020 on the oil import market in Mauritius, linking it to the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) treaty.
This report, submitted to the Minister of Commerce, was not made public, deeming it a “privileged communication.”
For Agiliss, an importer of various oil brands, the report’s conclusions were crucial for their business and a case filed against the Mauritian government in the COMESA Court of Justice.
Agiliss applied for “leave to apply for judicial review,” which was granted on February 8, 2021.
However, the Competition Commission later submitted a motion for the Minister of Commerce to be included as a Co-Respondent.
Despite objections from Agiliss, the judges determined that the Minister’s perspective as the report’s recipient could be highly relevant.
This case underscores the significance of the COMESA treaty in regulating trade in the region.
On March 14 of this year, the COMESA Court of Justice had provisionally ordered the suspension of the Mauritian government’s subsidy to the State Trading Corporation (STC) for the marketing of edible oil in Mauritius.
This decision followed Agiliss’ complaint to this body, claiming that the subsidies benefited its direct competitor, namely the STC.
Agiliss had stated in its complaint that the government had granted the STC subsidies of Rs 500 million for edible oil in 2022.
Agiliss, which asserts a 25% share of the edible oil market in Mauritius, said it was penalised by this decision, and that these subsidies contravene several provisions of the COMESA treaty regarding free competition.
Source: Le Mauricien
