In a setback for low-cost airline, SpiceJet, the Supreme Court on Friday refused to extend the time for making payment to Kalanidhi Maran and his Kal Airways in pursuance of an arbitral award of `578 crore related to a share-transfer dispute, saying these are luxury litigations.
While refusing to extend the time, the Delhi High Court had on June 1 directed SpiceJet to deposit forthwith `75 crore that has to be paid to Maran and his Kal Airways towards interest on the arbitral award.
Prior to this, the apex court had ordered that the bank guarantee of `270 crore furnished by SpiceJet to Maran and his firm must be encashed immediately if the airlines failed to pay `75 crore towards interest on the arbitral award by May 13.
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A bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha on Friday did not accept the vehement submissions of senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for SpiceJet, and refused to the extend the time, saying the entire award has now become executable.
“The battery of lawyers is involved in all this and you know, the idea is just to delay complying with the orders of the court. I personally will not approve this… The writ of the court has to be complied with and now, they (the Delhi High Court) will execute the award,” the CJI said.
At the outset, senior advocate Maninder Singh, appearing for Maran and his Kal Airways, said that nothing has been paid after the Supreme Court asked them to pay `75 crore as interest and no indulgence be granted to them in the form of extension of time.
Singh, appearing through Karanjawala and Company, said SpiceJet has earlier also failed to comply with the order of the high court directing it to file an affidavit disclosing assets. FE