The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has temporarily restrained Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) from removing Jet Airways’ assets from its premises including its hangar and directed the airport operator not to deny the airline’s representative access to the premises.
The monitoring committee (MC) of Jet Airways had sought tribunal’s intervention after MIAL through letters directed the grounded airline to vacate its premises including a hangar and subsequently restrained its workmen and representatives from accessing the same.
“We restrain respondent (MIAL) from removing applicant’s assets from its premises including MIAL Hangar and not to deny access to the applicant’s representatives, workmen, nominees, etc. till the adjourned date”
said an NCLT bench of Justice PN Deshmukh and technical member KK Vohra in an order on February 9.
The tribunal will hear the matter further on March 4.
“We hold that the applicant has made out a case for a grant for interim relief in its favour,” it said.
The tribunal observed that even after Jet stopped its airline operations, its erstwhile resolution professional under the corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP) had, with the approval of its committee of creditors, retained a team of personnel to look after the maintenance of aircraft and engines placed at MIAL airport including its hangar.
Mumbai international airport is managed by Adani Airport Holding Ltd (AAHL), a subsidiary of Gautam Adani promoted Adani Enterprises.
Rohan Rajadhyaksha, counsel appearing for the monitoring committee of the airline, argued that lack of access to MIAL “will cause irreparable injury to the resolution plan”
“We need to access the area for maintenance and without that, the implementation of CIRP will be impacted”
Rajadhyaksha also said Jet’s revival plan has provisioned Rs 240 crore towards the airport, which MIAL will get as per the waterfall mechanism.
Countering this, senior advocate Vikram Nankani, appearing for MIAL, argued that occupation of hangar “has nothing to do with the revival of the company”.
“Indigo, SpiceJet and Vistara don’t have hangar in Mumbai Airport and they are operating here”
he said
“The contract regarding the hangar between Jet Airways and MIAL was ended before the initiation of CIRP,” Nankani said. “Now, how can they seek to the restoration of contract which is over?”
Last year on June 22, the Mumbai bench of NCLT had approved the resolution plan of Kalrock Capital and entrepreneur Murari Lal Jalan for revival of the defunct carrier.
The successful bidder had proposed a total cash flow of Rs 1,375 crore for the revival of Jet Airways.
The airline company had received claims of about Rs 24,887 crore, out of which Rs 8,462 crore were admitted by the resolution professional.
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