Band 4
Provided by Rahul Rai
Competition / Antitrust
Rahul co-founded Axiom5 after spending close to fifteen years at leading Indian firms and the chambers of senior counsel. He led the competition law team at AZB & Partners in Mumbai from 2012 until 2019 and then spent three years as a counsel with the Chambers of Mr. Gopal Subramanium, former Solicitor General of India.
Rahul’s practice focuses on antitrust investigations, contentious competition litigation, and strategic merger control. Drawing from his experience in the courtroom, with the CCI, other stakeholders, and academic engagements, Rahul helps clients navigate the fast-evolving competition policy landscape in India. He has advised and represented clients on a number of complex cartels, abuse of dominance, and vertical restraint investigations across various industries. In 2023, Rahul was appointed to an expert panel tasked with drafting a new Digital Competition Act by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India.
Bar Council of India, 2008
1. Rahul Rai, CCI Vs Meta: Who Gains From The Data Sharing Ban?, Inc42, (Jan. 16, 2025)
2. Rahul Rai & Anicham Tamilmani, Could Karnataka’s Uniform Pricing Plan Derail Innovation In The Ride-Hailing Market?, Inc42, (Mar. 24, 2024)
3. Rahul Rai & Anicham Tamilmani, India Inc’s new-found liking for no-poach agreements could invite CCI’s attention, Deccan Herald, (Mar, 01,2024)
4. Rahul Rai & Shruti A Murali, CCI’s new merger norms: Hits and misses, Hindu Businessline, (Nov. 05, 2024, 12:38 PM)
5. P.K.Singh, Samir Gandhi and Rahul Rai, 3 design deficiencies in the CCI's draft settlement & commitment regulations, Moneycontrol, (Sep. 10, 2023, 19:47 IST)
6. Rahul Rai & Shivanghi Sukumar, Will data Bill impact competitiveness of Indian firms?, Deccan Herald, (Jul. 17, 2023, 13:07 IST)
7. Rahul Rai & Shruti A Murali, What Do CCI’s Penalty Amendments Mean For Indian Startups?, Inc42, (Jun. 25, 2023)
8. Samir R Gandhi & Rahul Rai, Views: Fostering Competition Through Digital Public Infrastructure, Medinama, (Apr. 13, 2023)
9. Rahul Rai & Ravi Gangal, What Do The Competition Act Amendments Mean For Indian Tech Startups?, Inc42, (Apr. 12, 2023)
10. Pramod K Singh & Rahul Rai, Competition Amendment Bill, 2022: Embellishments That Merit A Relook, NDTVProfit, (Feb. 21, 2023)
11. Rahul Rai & Shivanghi Sukumar, Should India emulate EU rules targeting Big Tech firms?, Moneycontrol, (Dec. 27, 2022, 14:46 IST)
12. Rahul Rai & Shruti Aji Murali, Why CCI's Decision Against Makemytrip-GoIbibo-Oyo Redefines Platform Markets, NDTVProfit, (Nov. 05, 2022, 09:23 AM IST)
13. Rahul Rai et al., Asian Antitrust Watchdogs on the Prowl Against Big Tech, In-House Community, (Feb. 28, 2022)
14. Rahul Rai & Shruti Aji Murali, Mergers & Acquisitions by Big Tech: Does India need to tweak its competition rules? (Sep. 27, 2021)
15. Rahul Rai & Shruti Aji Murali, Proposed Amendments to the E-Commerce Rules – the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, (Jul. 6, 2021)
16. Rahul Rai & Shruti Aji Murali, The missing piece in CCI’s cases against Big-Tech firms, Medianama, (Jun. 28, 2021)
17. Rahul Rai & Shruti Aji Murali, Competition regulator should not be burdened with WhatsApp privacy issue, BW Legal World, (Feb. 25, 2021)
West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences, Kolkata
B.A., LLB. (Hons.)
2002 - 2007
Stanford Law School
LL.M., International Economic Law Business & Policy,
2011 - 2012
National University of Juridical Sciences
B.A., LLB.
2002 - 2007
Provided by Chambers
Rahul Rai is highly respected for advising on the full spectrum of competition law matters and adeptly handles both investigations and merger control issues, as well as compliance advice.
Provided by Chambers
Rahul fights hard for us and goes above and beyond, doing everything to ensure a great outcome. I trust and recommend him.
He's a busy fellow but it's quite easy to contact him if you need expert advice at any point in time. He knows competition law very well and has worked on global issues.
Rahul fights hard for us and goes above and beyond, doing everything to ensure a great outcome. I trust and recommend him.
He's a busy fellow but it's quite easy to contact him if you need expert advice at any point in time. He knows competition law very well and has worked on global issues.
