In Brief
SCM Solifert acquired 24.46% shares of Mangalore Chemicals & Fertilisers Limited on 3 July 2013, and made a second acquisition in 2014. The Competition Commission imposed a Rs. 2 crore penalty for failing to notify these combinations under section 6(2) of the Competition Act, 2002. The Court held that notification must be given before (ex ante), not after, an acquisition. Acquiring over 10% and intending strategic control cannot be treated as mere investment. Placing shares in escrow does not cure notification violations. The Court affirmed that mens rea is irrelevant for civil statutory breach; penalty follows automatically upon violation. The appeal was dismissed."
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