NCLT Mumbai approves Vodafone-Idea merger

The National Company Law Tribunal, Mumbai Bench has recently approved the merger of Idea Cellular and Vodafone India..The Composite Scheme of Amalgamation and Arrangement among Vodafone Mobile Services Limited, Vodafone India Limited and Idea Cellular, pursuant to Section 230, 231 and 232 of the Companies Act, 2013, was approved by a two-member Bench of NCLT comprising Judicial Member BSV Prakash Kumar and Technical Member Ravikumar Duraisamy..“(2) Vodafone Mobile Services and Vodafone India Limited shall be dissolved, without winding-up on August 31, 2018….(6) All parties to the Scheme, or other persons interested shall be at liberty to apply to this Tribunal for any directions as may be necessary in regard to the working of the Scheme of amalgamation and arrangement..(7) All authorities to act on a copy of the order along with the Scheme, duly authenticated by the Assistant Registrar, NCLT, Mumbai Bench..(8) However, it is further clarified that this order will not have any bearing on the proceedings, if any, to be initiated by Income Tax Authorities in relation to this Scheme..(9) Accordingly, MA 694 of 2018 is allowed.”, the order decreed..The Competition Commission of India and the Department of Telecommunications had given its approval to the merger in July this year..As per an ET report, the new merged entity, Vodafone Idea Limited, will be the largest mobile phone operator in India with more than 440 million subscribers 34.7% market revenue shares..The merger, which has brought down the number of major private players in the market to three, also witnessed a friendly exchange among them on Twitter with Reliance Jio claiming to have “brought together” the two former competitors..Reliance Jio’s entry in the telecom market, with free promotional offers, had started a never-witnessed-before price war in the sector, to not just win new customers, but also retain the existing ones..These pricing policies was also a matter of challenge before the Competition Commission which ultimately dismissed it for lack of any anti-competitive behaviour. .Senior Advocate Janak Dwarkadas along with DMD Advocates Partner Fereshte D. Sethna, Shreema Doshi, Mrunal Paresk, Adhiraj Malhotra, Sagar Sarin, Lokesh Aidasani, Hasmukh Ravaria, Divya Hirawat and Vidya Phanse represented Vodafone Group at the NCLT.