Delhi High Court directs SpiceJet to pay ₹380 crore to former promoter and Sun Group Chairman Kalanithi Maran

The Delhi High Court on Monday passed an order directing Indian budget airline SpiceJet to pay Sun Group Chairman and the airline's former promoter Kalanithi Maran ₹380 crore in outstanding dues [Kal Airways Pvt Ltd v. M/s SpiceJet Ltd]..Justice Yogesh Khanna passed the order after Maran claimed that the airline was violating a previous decision of the Court, which was upheld by the apex court, arising from a share transfer dispute between the parties."The arguments of the decree holder appears plausible as admittedly there is no modification of order dated 13.02.2023 passed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court, hence it need to be followed," the order stated..Maran had initially moved the Delhi High Court in October 2020 seeking attachment of the shareholding of SpiceJet promoter Ajay Singh after the airline failed to deposit ₹243 crore in his favour.This plea was allowed and the amount was directed to be deposited in three weeks. An application by the airline for modification of the order was rejected.In appeal, the Supreme Court also directed that the bank guarantee be encashed immediately and the proceeds be paid directly to Maran. Further, the airline was ordered to pay ₹75 crore within three months towards the liability on account of interest..Before the High Court, Maran's counsel argued that the ₹75 crore had not yet been deposited and that the interest liability had gone from ₹362 crore to ₹380 crore.SpiceJet contended that it had already moved an application before the top court seeking an extension of three months to pay the remaining amount. This submission was disputed by Maran..Taking this into account, the Court directed SpiceJet to deposit the entire outstanding amount and filed an affidavit of assets within four weeks.The case will be heard next on September 5..Senior Advocate Maninder Singh and Advocates Nandini Gore, Sonia Nigam, Yash Dubey, Yashwant Gaggar and Prabhas Bajaj appeared for Maran while SpiceJet was represented by Senior Advocate Sandeep Sethi and Advocate Abhinav Sharma..The share transfer dispute between Maran and SpiceJet dates back to a 2015 sale purchase agreement, which led to a change in ownership of the budget carrier from Maran to co-founder Ajay Singh.According to the agreement, Maran had transferred his 58.46 per cent stake in the airline. In return for the transfer, Maran and his Kal Airways were to receive stock warrants and Convertible Redeemable Preference Shares from SpiceJet.After SpiceJet failed to issue warrants or allot tranches of preference shares, Maran filed the suit before the High Court to enforce the terms of the agreement..[Read Order]