The Supreme Court Thursday allowed the government to bring amendments to the Competition Commission Act as suggested by the centre, including making the panel's chairperson an expert and not a judge.

A three-member bench comprising Chief Justice R.C. Lahoti and judges G.P. Mathur and P.K. Balasubramanyan disposed of petitions filed by advocates Brahma Dutt and R. Gandhi challenging the constitutional validity of the act.

The bench, leaving the issue open, said the court could consider questions raised in the petitions after the government carried out amendments proposed by the apex court.

These proposed amendments include making the chief of an appellate tribunal a judicial person.

The previous National Democratic Alliance government, while introducing the amendments, provided for the appointment of a bureaucrat to head the Competition Commission.

But the apex court stayed this and the government was asked to consider amendments to the act.

However, the United Progressive Alliance government too endorsed the stand of its predecessor and informed the Supreme Court that only a technical expert and not a judge could be chairperson of the commission.

In its fresh proposals, the government while reiterating that the commission needed to be a body of experts, said that if at all a judge was included in the panel, it would be on the strength of his expertise in the field and not because of his judicial background.

It said the commission, apart from the chairperson, should have a maximum of six members.

The government, however, said there would be an appellate tribunal to hear appeals against the orders of the commission and this tribunal would be headed by a sitting or retired Supreme Court judge or chief justice of a high court.

The other two members of the tribunal would be members with expertise in competition and related matters.

The government also agreed to amend controversial provision related to execution of the orders of the commission by high courts and substituted the high courts with civil courts.

In another modification, the government said the commission would be divested of the power to detain a person in civil prison in the event of contravention of provisions of the act.

Disposing of the petitions, the apex court said the legality of provisions could be tested only after the amended act was put in place.