Context :
Government Sets Up Panel On Digital Competition Law / BQ Prime
/ 06 Feb 2023
Extract :
The government has set up a panel on digital
competition law to examine various regulatory aspects in dealing with
challenges emerging from the digital economy. Chaired by corporate affairs
secretary Manoj Govil, the panel will also examine the need for an ex-ante
regulatory mechanism for digital markets through a separate legislation,
according to an official order.
The panel has been set up less than two months
after a Parliamentary panel proposed having a new digital competition law to
curb anti-competitive practices in the digital markets. According to the order
issued by the corporate affairs ministry on Monday, Competition Commission of
India chairperson will be part of the panel apart from experts in different
fields.
There will also be representatives from NITI
Aayog, Department of Commerce, Department of Economic Affairs, Department of
Consumer Affairs, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, and
the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. The panel will review
whether existing provisions in the Competition Act, 2022, and the rules and
regulations framed thereunder are sufficient to deal with the challenges that
have emerged from the digital economy.
Further, it will study the international best
practices on regulation in the field of the digital markets as well as other
regulatory regimes/ institutional mechanisms/government policies regarding
competition in the digital markets.
As per the
order, the practices of leading players/ Systemically Important Digital
Intermediaries which limit or have the potential to cuase harm in the digital
markets will also be looked into by the committee
Other members of the committee are Nasscom
co-Founder and Indian Angel Network chairman Saurabh Srivastava, Professor of
Economics (Retd.) from Delhi School of Economics Aditya Bhattacharjea, Khaitan
& Co's Haigreve Khaitan, IKDHVAJ Advisers LLP's Harsha Vardhana Singh,
Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co.'s Pallavi Shardul Shroff, P&A Law
Offices' Anand S Pathak, Axiom5 Law Chamber's Rahul Rai and a corporate affairs
ministry's joint secretary.
As per the order, the panel's chairperson can
co-opt any other person as a member/special invitee as and when required.
My Take :
Extract :
Ø It is no different when it comes
to the Laws governing ECONOMY
" E- Commerce and Foreign Direct
Investment " are the " Special Theory
of
ECONOMY " , whereas
" Commerce and Investment
" are the " General Theory of ECONOMY "
Ø And at this very moment , the
Super-Ordinate Goal of our ECONOMY is :
#
Create millions of Self
Employed ( 400 million to start with and 12 million
per year , thereafter )
While debating the
issues ,the Committee may want to keep in mind how following technologies will
change the Commerce Landscape , within the next 2 years :
# Everything (
Goods and Services ) will be marketed / sold online
# No business
/ industry will , solely remain OFFLINE
# When goods are not being delivered
at your doorstep using Drones, your table-
top 3D Printers will print out all kinds of Consumables ( including Food ! ), by
downloading Designs from internet . Houses will be 3D printed
# Services of
all kinds ( Patient-care / Health care / Psychological / Consulting /
Coding /
Remotely operating Devices and Machineries / Teaching / Curating /
Controlling Riots etc ) , will be carried out ( hopefully, by Indians if Committee
takes the right , far-reaching decisions ), remotely from 10,000 Km away using
Virtual Reality / Augmented Reality / Holographic Tele-presence / Hepatic gloves
etc
# Entire cycle
of Designing / Manufacturing / Marketing / Selling / Order-taking /
Delivering
/ After-sales Servicing / Logistics / Collecting Payments / etc , will
get spread so thinly across Countries / Continents / Companies / Individuals ,
that it will become next to impossible to keep track of " WHO " is adding
" WHAT " value to the process , and " WHEN " , and from " WHERE " ! No one
will be able to unravel this GORDIAN KNOT !
# Industrial
Robots will play ever-increasing role at each step of this process ,
connected
through IoT
The best that the
Committee can recommend is adoption of the following ,
Parekh's , " 3 Laws of E-Commerce Economy " - to be incorporated
as 123rd
Constitutional
Amendment
( with apologies
to Isaac Asimov's 3 Laws of Robotics ! ) :
LAW # 1
:
Asimov :
A robot may not injure a human being or, through
inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
Parekh :
Rules / Regulations of E-Commerce
shall not come in the way of unfettered
creation of SELF EMPLOYMENT
Any existing Law / Rule /
Regulation that hinders a person to become Self
Employed, shall be treated as ultravires
Further , any Law / Regulation of "
E-Commerce / FDI " which slows down
Investment ( Foreign or Local /
Official or through channeling of BLACK MONEY ),
shall be treated as " bad in law " and struck down
LAW # 2
Asimov :
A robot must obey the orders given it by human
beings, except where such
orders would conflict with the First Law.
Parekh :
Laws / Regulations governing " E-Commerce / FDI " shall be
subservient to Laws
/ Regulations governing " Commerce / Investment " .
Whenever
any Public Authority / Court finds conflict between the two , laws /
regulations governing " Commerce/ Investments " , shall prevail under all
circumstances , and in favor of the self employed
LAW # 3
Asimov :
A robot must protect its own existence as long as
such protection does not
conflict with the First or Second Laws.
Parekh :
Laws / Regulations of
" E-Commerce / FDI " which get over-ruled under LAW # 2 ,
shall
immediately " Self Destruct "
in favor of unobstructed
progress of TECHNOLOGIAL ADVANCES
Before drafting its
recommendations , the Committee may want to look up my
specific suggestions at
:
# In defense
of FDI in Defense
# Start-Up Eco-Systems / USA vs INDIA
# A NEW
ECONOMIC ORDER ? aka " Start Up Act - 2015 "
#
WHO WILL
OBSOLETE WHOM ?
#
In
Wonderland of Start Ups
# Defining E - Commerce
# FDI : By any other name ?
#
Making
India a Tax Haven ?
# E - Commerce is Easy Commerce !
#
FDI in
India Post ?
#
50Million
New Jobs in 5 Months ?
#
Level
Playing Field ?
#
3D
Printed Office
#
Rejoice,
You Self Employed !
#
How
to stop the Start Ups !
# Hire
when you Need : Fire when you don't
#
Create
Self Employment
#
Robots,
Robots Everywhere , Not a Soul to See !
#
Age
of Automation
#
Tech
World turning Imagination Real
#
Second
Industrial Revolution
#
Back
Factory of the World
#
Competitive
Advantages are Transient
#
A
Virtuous Circle
Dear Committee Members :
Please
, overlook the TREE /
focus on the WOODS !
With Regards,
Hemen Parekh
www.hemenparekh.ai / 11
Feb 2023
