Two governments formed DMRC and this corporation has no money, what message are you sending? Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on Thursday expressed its displeasure over the Central and Delhi government's stand that they cannot be made liable to pay the ₹6,300 crore arbitration award to Anil Ambani owned Delhi Airport Metro Express Private Limited (DAMEL). .Justice Yashwant Varma remarked that the two elected governments formed the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) whose stand now is that it has no money to honour the award. “It is amazing that there are two elected governments who have formed this corporation and this corporation has no money. Imagine what message you are conveying to the outside world; government corporation refusing to deal with an award,” the judge said. The bench then ordered the DMRC to place all requisite records related to its finances before the court.Justice Varma directed that the competent authorities of the DMRC shall attend the proceedings so that a holistic view can be taken about the funds available with the corporation.The Central government was asked to place before the court the copy of the order refusing to grant sanction for attachment of the Delhi Metro's properties.The matter will be taken up again tomorrow..The Court was dealing with an execution petition filed by Reliance Infrastructure subsidiary, DAMEPL, seeking payment of the money owed by the DMRC.Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Chetan Sharma appeared for the Central government and presented an affidavit stating that the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) cannot be made liable for payment of the amount in its capacity as a Delhi Metro shareholderThe government further said that it cannot grant sanction for attachment of the Delhi Metro's properties because it would result in closure of DMRC and bring the national capital to a halt.This would cause significant inconvenience to the public and impact law and order in the city, the government added..The Central and Delhi governments each hold 50% shares in the DMRC. The Delhi government has already refused to pay the money.DAMEPL has claimed that the total arbitration amount along with interest in its favour stands at over ₹8,000 crore of which over ₹6,300 crore is yet to be paid.The award under consideration arose out of an agreement signed between the DMRC and DAMEPL in 2008 to develop and operate the orange line of the Delhi Metro that connects Indira Gandhi International Airport's Terminal-3 to Dwarka Sector-21.In March 2022, the High Court had directed DMRC to pay the entire balance amount to the DAMEPL along with interest in two equal installments, by May 31. This order was upheld by the Supreme Court on May 5.In December 2022, the Supreme Court asked the High Court to proceed with the matter expeditiously and decide it in three months..Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.