According to the University, the newly appointed faculty members bring diverse academic and professional experience from institutions such as the University of Delhi, University of Allahabad, Banaras Hindu University, University of Lucknow, Gautam Buddha University, Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University, National Law University Jodhpur, National Law University Delhi, National Law University Odisha, and the Indian Institutes of Technology Kharagpur, among others.

The University stated that the new appointments are expected to strengthen teaching and research in emerging areas of law, including human organ transplantation, consumer protection, data privacy, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, forensic evidence, medical jurisprudence, FinTech, and regulation of digital businesses and emerging technologies.

The newly appointed faculty members are Dr. Aakriti Sharma, Dr. Astha Misra, Dr. Garima Singh, Dr. Gaurav Kumar, Dr. Gaurav Singh Sachan, Dr. Keerty Dabbas, Dr. Nikita Chaudhary, Dr. Ravi Prakash Rahul, Dr. Swati Kumari Mawandiya, Dr. Vivek Trivedi, Ms. Tanya Sagar, and Mr. Yash Saxena. The University stated that they have already assumed teaching responsibilities and have begun contributing to various academic and administrative committees.

The academic session 2026–27 commenced on August 1, 2026, with a range of academic, co-curricular and student-focused activities. The University expects the enhanced faculty strength to improve teaching, research, mentoring and institutional engagement.

RPNLU currently offers the five-year integrated B.A. LL.B. programme, along with LL.M. and Ph.D. programmes. The University stated that it aims to emerge as a centre of excellence in legal education, research and scholarship while fostering competent, ethical and socially responsive legal professionals.

At present, the University is functioning from its transit campus, while construction of its permanent campus at Jhalwa is progressing. Speaking about the development, Registrar Varun Kumar Pandey said that the permanent campus project has received significant support from Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who serves as the Chairperson of the University. He added that the transition to the permanent campus is expected to enhance the University's academic and infrastructural capabilities.

Highlighting the University's growth, Vice-Chancellor Senior Prof. (Dr.) Usha Tandon said that under the leadership of Justice Manoj Misra, Judge of the Supreme Court of India and Visitor of the University, and Justice Arun Bhansali, Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court and Chancellor of the University, RPNLU is emerging as a vibrant centre of legal education and academic excellence.

The University stated that with its growing faculty strength, interdisciplinary academic orientation and developing permanent campus, it aims to strengthen its position in the national legal education landscape.

The competition seeks to provide students with a platform to engage critically with contemporary legal, social, and ethical questions surrounding reproductive choice, bodily integrity, and the evolving contours of family law. By encouraging rigorous and original scholarship, the Centre aims to foster meaningful discourse on issues that continue to shape legal and policy debates both in India and globally.

About the Centre for Family Law

The Centre for Family Law, National Law University, Jodhpur, is dedicated to promoting scholarship, dialogue, and research in the field of family law and allied disciplines. Through lectures, discussions, publications, competitions, and other academic initiatives, the Centre seeks to foster critical engagement with contemporary legal and social issues affecting families and individuals.

About the Competition

The relationship between family law and questions of reproductive autonomy has become increasingly significant in contemporary legal discourse. Issues such as abortion rights, assisted reproductive technologies, maternal healthcare, child marriage, and bodily integrity raise complex questions concerning individual autonomy, state regulation, gender justice, and access to healthcare.

Recognising the need for sustained academic engagement with these issues, the Centre for Family Law has launched this essay competition to encourage students to explore the intersections between law, family, society, and individual rights through analytical and research-driven writing.

Theme: Reproductive Rights and Bodily Autonomy

Participants are invited to critically examine the legal, constitutional, social, and policy dimensions of reproductive rights and bodily autonomy through an interdisciplinary lens. The following sub-themes are merely indicative and not exhaustive:

• Abortion: Reproductive Choice and State Control
• Female Genital Mutilation and the Right to Bodily Integrity
• Surrogacy and Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021
• Maternal Health and Post-Birth Care
• Child Marriage and Reproductive Autonomy

Participants are free to explore any topic that falls within the broader theme of the competition.

Awards and Recognition

The competition offers:

• Cash prizes up to the tune of Rs. 10,000;
• One-year CaseMine AI Pro subscriptions for the authors of the top three winning entries;
• Publication opportunities in the Family Law Chronicle for selected submissions;
• Certificates of Achievement, Merit, and Participation, as applicable.

Registration form and Fee payment portal

To facilitate the administration of the competition and ensure committed participation, the following registration fee shall be applicable:

• Single-Author Submission: ₹300
• Co-Authored Submission: ₹600

Please find the registration link attached: https://forms.gle/bYsK76wwn2GynfSJA

Please note that the link to the payment portal is attached in the description of the google form. Participants are required to upload proof of payment while completing the registration process.

Important Dates

• Registration Deadline: 24 August 2026 [this has been extended to 13 August, 2026]
• Submission Deadline: 10 September 2026

For detailed information regarding eligibility, formatting requirements, registration, and submission procedures, participants are advised to refer to the official competition brochure.

ABOUT CCCPL

The Centre for Competition and Consumer Protection Law (CCCPL) is a research centre dedicated to advancing understanding and promoting awareness of competition and consumer protection laws. Driven by a committed academic and research community, the Centre seeks to ensure a fair and competitive marketplace through rigorous scholarship and informed policy engagement. Through research, advocacy, and outreach initiatives, it contributes to the development of sound legal frameworks that safeguard the interests of both consumers and businesses.

ABOUT CALL FOR BLOGS

CCCPL is presently organising a Call for Blogs, inviting submissions on contemporary and emerging issues in competition law and consumer protection, with the aim of fostering meaningful academic discourse and policy-oriented analysis. The initiative seeks to provide a platform for students, researchers, practitioners, academicians, and other stakeholders to engage critically with evolving legal, economic, and regulatory developments in these fields.

ELIGIBILITY

Submissions are invited from:

• Academicians and Researchers

• Legal Practitioners and Policy Professionals

• Ph.D. Scholars

• Postgraduate and Undergraduate Students

THEME

The authors may send submissions centered around contemporary and relevant issues of competition law and consumer protection. An illustrative and non-exhaustive list of themes is provided in the brochure for reference. Authors are encouraged to interpret the themes creatively and explore any interdisciplinary angles.

SUBMISSION & FORMATTING GUIDELINES

· Submissions should be in the range of 1000 to 1500 words, with an abstract no longer than 70 words included in the 1500 words.

· Co-authorship of up to 2 authors is allowed.

· Use Times New Roman Font Size 12, with Line Spacing of 1.5.

· The manuscript should not contain the name of the author(s), institutional affiliation, or any other identification mark.

· Submissions should be the original work of the author(s). All manuscripts will be checked for plagiarism by the Editorial Board, and offensive, abusive, derogatory, or potentially defamatory submissions will be rejected. A similarity index of 12% will be strictly adhered to for all submissions.

· Submissions must only be made by filling out this Google Form. Submissions made through any other medium will be rejected.

· Once the Editorial Board receives the article, it will go through a rigorous review, and the decision about its acceptance or rejection shall be communicated to the author(s) within 24 days. It might, in unforeseen circumstances, extend to 30 days; the same would be communicated to the author(s) by the Board.

· Adhering to all the submission guidelines is mandatory.

The authors may kindly refer to the Brochure for additional submission guidelines.

SUBMISSION DEADLINES

The blog invites rolling submissions.

SUBMISSION PROCEDURE

Submissions made only in a .doc/.docx format are accepted.

The file name must be “Title_CCCPL Manuscript”. The Title of the manuscript should not be more than 12 words. Submissions must only be made by filling out this Google form. Submissions made through any other medium will be rejected.

CONTACT INFORMATION

You can reach us at cccplsubmissions@gmail.com

Click here for Brochure

About NLIU

National Law Institute University, Bhopal, ranks among the oldest and most esteemed National Law Universities in India. NLIU has led in providing quality legal education and has cultivated a global alumni network that has excelled in traditional legal fields as well as in public administration, academia, and policy-making. NLIU promotes and incentivizes a culture of academic rigor. The university fosters research in advanced legal fields, consistently organizing interdisciplinary and industry-wide workshops, seminars, and training programs on topics of current legal significance. The university serves as the alma mater for numerous esteemed journals that accept submissions from students, professionals, regulators, and academicians throughout the legal field, fostering a culture of academic research and facilitating multi-directional discourse.

About CJLT-Blog

The Blog serves as a platform for rigorous, analytical, and conceptually grounded engagement with jurisprudence, legal theory, and allied philosophical and interdisciplinary inquiries into law. We particularly encourage submissions that critically examine foundational questions concerning the nature, methods, values, and limits of law, while remaining clear, accessible and theoretically robust.

Eligibility

Contributions are welcome from students, researchers, practitioners, and academicians. Submissions should reflect strong legal reasoning, clarity of thought, and relevance to the field of Jurisprudence and Legal Theory.

Submission Details

Submission details can be referred through the centre's official website: cjlt.nliu.ac.in

For any queries regarding the blog, please reach out to blog.cjlt@nliu.ac.in. For any queries regarding the centre, please reach out to cjlt@nliu.ac.in.

NFSU is the world's first and only university dedicated to education, training, research and innovation in forensic sciences and allied disciplines, including behavioural sciences, cybersecurity, digital forensics and criminology. Headquartered in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, the University presently operates through 16 campuses, including its first international campus in Jinja, Uganda. The University is at the forefront of advancing forensic applications in law, criminal justice administration, homeland security, governance and human rights. Through its interdisciplinary academic programmes, specialised training, research and policy engagement, NFSU develops highly skilled professionals capable of addressing contemporary challenges faced by national and international justice systems. Its broader vision is to integrate forensic science into justice delivery, governance and public policy.

About The School Of Law, Forensic Justice & Policy Studies

The School of Law, Forensic Justice & Policy Studies (SLFJPS) at NFSU was established to provide interdisciplinary and professionally oriented legal education, with particular emphasis on the application of forensic science, technology and policy across diverse areas of law and justice administration. The School aspires to become a leading centre for education, research and professional training in forensic justice. It seeks to prepare legal professionals, policymakers, researchers and public officials to respond effectively to emerging challenges in criminal justice, cybercrime, digital evidence, forensic investigation, governance and technology regulation.

SLFJPS addresses the evolving requirements of the legal profession through intellectually rigorous, technologically informed and practically relevant academic programmes. Through its teaching, research, practical training and policy engagement, the School is committed to developing technology-proficient lawyers and justice-sector professionals capable of contributing meaningful, innovative and practically viable solutions to contemporary legal and policy challenges.

About Tashkent State University of Law (TSUL)

Tashkent State University of Law (TSUL) is a leading higher-education and scientific-methodological institution in Uzbekistan for the education, training and professional development of legal specialists. Rooted in Uzbekistan's national tradition of legal education, TSUL combines established academic foundations with modern pedagogical approaches. The University undertakes fundamental and applied research on contemporary questions of legislation and legal practice and contributes to legal awareness, legal culture and international academic cooperation.

About the Programme

NFSU, India, in collaboration with TSUL, Uzbekistan, invites applications for the Dual Degree LL.M. in Cyber Crime Law & Digital Forensics for the academic year 2026–27. Designed for the rapidly evolving field of digital justice, the programme integrates law, technology and forensic sciences and provides academic and cultural exposure in India and Uzbekistan. It enables learners to examine the legal, investigative, evidentiary and policy dimensions of cybercrime and emerging technologies through a comparative and interdisciplinary framework.

Programme Focus

The programme focuses on Cyber Crime Law, Digital Forensics, Cybercrime Investigation, Digital Evidence, Emerging Technologies and Comparative Legal Systems. Its interdisciplinary approach is intended to help learners understand how legal principles, forensic methods and technological tools interact in contemporary investigations, adjudication, regulation and policy development.

Programme Overview

Duration: Two semesters (one year)

Course Type: Regular, full-time

Credits: 60 credits

Semester I: National Forensic Sciences University, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India

Semester II: Tashkent State University of Law, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Degrees Awarded: Two Master's degrees: LL.M. in Cyber Crime Law & Digital Forensics by NFSU and the corresponding Master's degree in Cyber Law by TSUL (programme code 70420127)

Total Intake: 30 students

Tuition Fee: USD 1,725 per semester

Eligibility and Selection Process

• A Bachelor's or Master's degree (Law) from a recognised or accredited institution

• Proficiency in English

• Participation in the prescribed interview process

Admission will be subject to verification of academic credentials and fulfilment of the applicable requirements prescribed by NFSU and TSUL.

Key Highlights

• Two Master's degrees awarded through two collaborating universities

• Academic and cultural exposure in India and Uzbekistan

• Interdisciplinary learning across law, technology and forensic sciences

• Engagement with global faculty and research opportunities

• Industry-oriented and policy-driven learning

• Career pathways in law firms, cybersecurity, digital investigations, government agencies and international organisations

Application Details

Last date to apply: 30 August 2026

Application form: https://forms.gle/s5whEQNBysqsMHyd7

NFSU admissions and information: https://nfsu.ac.in/news | https://nfsu.ac.in/CSAS

For any query, please write to us: admission_law@nfsu.ac.in

Historically, the Indian labour market has been regulated by labour and employment laws, which primarily focus on aspects such as wages, working conditions, and collective bargaining. Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution guarantees every citizen the freedom to practice any profession or carry on any occupation, trade, or business. Although the State can impose reasonable restrictions under Article 19(6), the broader constitutional vision clearly supports occupational mobility and guards against unfair restraints on the freedom to work. However, in today's labour markets, certain contractual practices have begun to restrict employee mobility in subtle yet powerful ways, often slipping past the boundaries of traditional labour law scrutiny.

No-poach agreements, also known as non-solicitation agreements, are arrangements under which firms agree not to recruit or hire each other's employees. These agreements may be written or informal and are often justified by firms as necessary for maintaining stability or protecting business interests. However, when such agreements are entered into between competitors without a legitimate justification, they effectively limit workers' employment options and weaken their bargaining power. Over time, this may lead to a reduction in wages, worker mobility, and an inefficient allocation of skills. However, these agreements have largely escaped antitrust scrutiny.

A significant shift in this approach occurred in June 2025, when the European Commission (“EC”) imposed fines totalling €329 million on Delivery Hero and Glovo for entering into no-poach agreements and exchanging sensitive information relating to employee hiring and compensation. Rather than focusing on price effects in downstream markets, the Commission examined how the conduct restricted competition in the labour market itself. In doing so, it recognised workers as participants in a market that is capable of being distorted through collusive conduct.

This raises a significant question: Should the Competition Commission of India draw inspiration from the Commission's approach? The CCI has historically focused on investigating price-fixing cartels, with labour market distortions rarely being examined as a competition law issue. While the labour discourse has traditionally centred on collective bargaining, wage protection, and industrial disputes, less focus has been placed on inter-employer arrangements that indirectly restrict mobility. With existing labour laws ill-equipped to address the issue, this blog aims to make a case for their scrutiny under competition law.

Labour-Market Cartelisation in India

From an economic perspective, the labour market is similar in nature to other markets. Workers offer their labour as service-providers, while organisations act as their buyers or recipients. In a competitive setting, organisations are expected to compete by offering higher wages and better working conditions to attract and retain labour. This competition ensures that wages reflect the value of labour and that human resources are allocated efficiently across firms and sectors. No-poach agreements disrupt this process by removing competitive pressure from the hiring market. When firms agree not to hire each other's employees, they effectively eliminate wage bidding between themselves. As a result, workers have fewer outside options, which weakens their bargaining power and allows firms to keep wages artificially low. Over time, this can lead to wage stagnation, reduced labour mobility, and inefficiencies in the allocation of skilled workers, particularly in sectors where a limited number of firms dominate employment opportunities. A study conducted by Matthew Gibson, titled 'How Major Tech Firms Used Illegal “No-Poach” Agreements to Control Workers' Salaries', analysed the effects of no-poach agreements on employee salaries, stock-based compensation, and job satisfaction in the context of a United States Department of Justice investigation. The investigation concerned no-poach arrangements among several technology companies, including Adobe, Apple, eBay, Google, Intel, Intuit, Lucasfilm, and Pixar. The study compared salary levels between firms that were part of these arrangements and those that were not. It found that employees at the colluding firms earned, on average, around 6% less than employees at non-colluding firms. Importantly, once the no-poach agreements were discontinued, salary levels at the colluding firms began to align with those offered by non-colluding firms. Based on these findings, the study concluded that the no-poach agreements in Silicon Valley had a significant negative effect on worker compensation. These effects closely resemble those caused by traditional cartels in product markets.

When competing firms coordinate their hiring practices to avoid competing for labour, they engage in behaviour that is functionally equivalent to market allocation or price-fixing. Basically, in a price-fixing cartel, firms agree not to compete on price, leading to higher prices and reduced consumer welfare. Similarly, in a labour-market cartel, firms agree not to compete for workers, leading to suppressed wages and reduced worker welfare. The core feature in both cases is the suppression of competition through coordination between competitors. The fact that the harm is suffered by workers rather than consumers does not alter the anti-competitive nature of the conduct.

To demonstrate this, we curated data from the financial statements of businesses involved in the food delivery industry in India. The dominant players in the industry are Zomato and Swiggy. Despite posting an approximately 714% increase in the consolidated adjusted revenue over a span of 5 financial years from FY 2020-21 to FY 2024-25 as derived from Zomato's annual financial statements, the employment benefit expense did not show a similar increase. A similar situation was seen at Swiggy, with the company's annual financial statements showing a 444% increase in profits from FY 2020-21 to FY 2024-25. However, the employee benefit expense during the same period registered a mere 73.33% increase.

The public data available for both the companies showcases a growing plateauing of the employment benefits expense curve. This showcases a growing standardization in the expense, indicating the possible existence of a no-poach agreement, which, as we shall demonstrate, have the effect of suppressing wages. However, the existing labour law architecture in India, especially the Code, does not effectively address this problem. The Code does not contemplate a scenario involving structural collusion among employers to bring down production costs. Instead, it focuses on employer-employee relations, regulating trade unions, grievance redressal mechanisms, strikes, lock-outs, etc. This lacuna in the existing architecture ignores the detrimental impact of such agreements on worker mobility and wage progression, necessitating the use of competition law to capture employer coordination in the labour market.

The absence of immediate consumer price effects has often been used to justify regulatory inaction in cases involving labour-market restraints. However, this approach fails to take into account the broader policy objectives of competition policy, which also include the promotion of efficiency, the prevention of the concentration of economic power, and the maintenance of the competitive process. Labour is an important factor of production in a number of sectors, and limiting the flow of labour as well as its price can have a variety of effects. Moreover, as evidenced from traditional competition law analysis, it struggles to address no-poach agreements because the harm they cause does not easily fit within a price-centric framework. Unlike classic cartels, these arrangements do not directly involve fixing prices or limiting output. Instead, they restrict competition over labour, which is reflected in stagnant wages and limited job switching rather than higher consumer prices. This has made it difficult for regulators to detect and penalise such conduct using conventional antitrust tools.

Given this context, no-poach agreements should be recognised as a form of labour-market cartelisation. They involve coordination between competing firms, restrict independent decision-making, and produce outcomes that would not arise in a competitive market. By focusing on the nature of the conduct rather than the identity of the affected market, competition law can more effectively address anti-competitive practices that undermine both worker welfare and market efficiency.

Recommendations

The authors have the following recommendations to bolster the CCI and other regulators' ability to address labour market collusion:

1. The Second Schedule of the Code, which deals with Unfair Labour Practices, should be amended to include the following clause:

“Entering into, or enforcing, any agreement, arrangement, or understanding with another employer, associations of employers, or entity, that, directly or indirectly, restricts, limits, or suppresses the mobility, recruitment, wage negotiation, hiring or employment terms of workers, including no-poach or wage-fixing arrangements across establishments.”

1. CCI should conduct and release its own market study identifying practices which constitute labour market collusion and provide a guidance note and/or policy brief addressing such conduct under section 3(3)(c).

2. The role of recognised trade unions may also be expanded to address coordinated practices across establishments. Currently, unions primarily raise disputes against individual employers. However, the legal framework could be strengthened to permit unions to challenge collective employer practices that negatively affect workers across a sector.

3. Labour Ministry should take active steps to spread awareness. It can organise workshops and issue advisories for HR departments, employer associations, and industry bodies explaining how informal no-poach agreements or wage coordination can negatively affect workers and encourage the adoption of alternative means such as non-disclosure agreements, minimum service periods, etc. to protect legitimate business interests.

4. Further, the burden can be shifted to such companies by calling upon the employers to disclose, in annual compliance filings under labour laws, whether they have entered into any inter-employer hiring restrictions or coordination arrangements.

Labour laws have always been concerned with managing the interface between employers and employees, e.g., with regard to salaries, working conditions, dispute resolution, and job security. Yet, as demonstrated in the blog, in a contemporary labour-intensive economic system, this is no longer sufficient. Labour markets cannot be seen as operating in a vacuum, independent of other market forces. They are intricately connected with the manner in which firms compete with one another for workers. Labourers are not only consumers whose welfare is improved by a fall in prices. They are also suppliers of a critical resource – human capital. When a labour market is distorted, it is a severe and enduring problem. To overlook it is a large blind spot in enforcement. No-poach agreements are an obvious candidate for the blind spot. No-poach agreements may be seen as a business practice, aimed at maintaining stability and protecting proprietary knowledge. However, when firms enter into an understanding with their competitors not to hire each other's workers, it is similar to a violation of the labour market. This is because it lessens wage competition and hampers workers' flexibility, which in turn hurts workers' bargaining power. The damage that such practices cause is real, especially in sectors that have a high concentration of skilled labour in a handful of firms. The blog has established that the economic damage caused by such agreements is neither theoretical nor speculative.

Authors are fifth year B.A.LL.B. (Hons.) students at Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar. Views are personal.

About the Competition

Hosted by the Moot Court Society and IQAC KLA, the 7th Edition of the KLA National Trial Advocacy Competition focuses on Criminal Law. The competition is structured to simulate realistic criminal trial proceedings, testing participants on procedural mastery, witness examination, evidentiary handling, and persuasive courtroom oral arguments.

Structure & Mode

The competition follows a Hybrid Mode:

• Procedural Test (Online): 10 September 2026 — Conducted online for researchers, testing knowledge of procedural laws including BNSS, BNS, and BSA (top 15 teams advance).
• Preliminary & Semi-Final Rounds (Virtual): 18–20 September 2026 — Conducted virtually via Zoom/G Meet.
• Final Round & Valedictory Session (Offline): 10 October 2026 — Held at V. R. Krishna Iyer Hall, KLA Campus, Thiruvananthapuram.

Eligibility & Team Composition

• Eligibility: Open to law students pursuing 3-year LL.B. or 5-year integrated LL.B. courses in BCI-approved institutions across India. Multiple entries per institution are permitted with official approval.
• Team Composition: Each team shall consist of 3 members (2 Speakers and 1 Researcher).

Prizes & Awards

• Winner: Merit Certificate + Cash Prize of ₹15,000
• Runners-Up: Merit Certificate + Cash Prize of ₹10,000
• Participation: E-Certificates for all participants.

Important Dates

• Last Date for Registration: 1 September 2026
• Procedural Test (Online): 10 September 2026
• Virtual Rounds (Prelims & Semi-Finals): 18–20 September 2026
• Final Round (Offline): 10 October 2026

Registration Details

• Initial Fee: ₹1,000 (Non-refundable)
• Qualified Teams Fee: ₹2,600 (Post-procedural test)
• Registration Form Link: Click Here to Register

Contact Information

• Email: klatrialadvocacy@keralalawacademy.in
• Faculty Convenors: Mrs. Gayathri Devi G. B. (+91 81368 46353), Mr. Manu Krishna S. K. (+91 99954 00709)
• Student Convenors: Jorge Abraham Thomas (+91 94975 12442), Keerthi B. S. (+91 73064 52916)

Click here for the brochure