New Delhi
The Delhi High Court has dismissed an appeal by Kalanithi Maran and KAL Airways seeking over Rs 1,300 crore in damages from SpiceJet. This decision follows earlier rejections of the same claims by an arbitration panel and a single-judge bench.
Maran, who once owned SpiceJet, claimed he and KAL Airways had paid Rs 679 crore for warrants and preference shares that were never issued. He said SpiceJet failed to either deliver the promised shares or return the money. However, a three-member tribunal of retired Supreme Court judges had already examined and dismissed these claims.
The tribunal also ordered SpiceJet’s current promoter, Ajay Singh, to repay Maran Rs 579 crore with interest. At the same time, Maran was told to pay Rs 29 crore in penal interest to Singh and SpiceJet. The tribunal confirmed that no rules were broken during the 2015 share sale agreement between the two sides.
After the tribunal’s decision, Maran appealed to the High Court, but the court upheld the tribunal’s findings. With this final rejection, Maran’s long legal battle ends without compensation.
SpiceJet’s shares rose 2.6% and were trading at Rs 44.97 on the BSE after the news broke. Maran had sold a 58.46% stake in SpiceJet back to Ajay Singh for just Rs 2 in early 2015, along with a Rs 1,500 crore debt. The airline had faced major financial troubles and was grounded before Singh regained control.
The court’s ruling supports earlier decisions in SpiceJet’s favor.