Karnataka High Court tightens noose around UB Holdings

Urges UB Group to come up with a plan to payback Rs 330 crore to aircraft lessors

The Karnataka High Court in a fresh move has urged the UB Group comprising of UB Holdings and Kingfisher Airlines to come up with a concrete plan on how it intends to pay an outstanding of around Rs 330 crore towards a clutch of aircraft lessors.

A total of eight aircraft lessors had over the past six months filed petitions in the Karnataka High Court seeking to get back the money which was due from Kingfisher Airlines. A hearing for all these petitioners against UB Holdings was conducted late on Friday and the court said that UB Holdings should submit a concrete plan to settle this issue, failing which the winding up petition will be pursued by the High Court.

The top brass of UB Holdings including UB Group president & CFO Ravi Nedungadi attended the court proceedings and their legal counsel Holla & Holla submitted that they will be able to furnish a deposit of Rs 100 crore as soon as the Reserve Bank of India clears the United Spirits stake sale to Diageo.   

According to information available, the winding up petitions were filed by IAE Intl Aero Engines, Rolls Royce & Partners, RRPF Engine Leasing, BNP Paribas, ATR, SM6, Wells Fargo Bank and Aerotron.

This move by Karnataka High Courts comes as a fresh blow to the UB Group which has been battling many a fire over Rs 7,000 crore debt raised by Kingfisher Airlines and also over outstandings to various other stake holders including employees, airport operators, oil marketing companies among others.  

The jolt by Karnataka High Court further compounds the woes for UB Group which is staring down the barrel against the lenders led by State Bank of India who over the past week have been preparing steps to recall the debt.   While that step will in itself be protracted, the lenders are aggresively looking at encashing the pledged shares of United Spirits to recover a part of the outstandings as a first step. The management of UB Group had said that they will work closely with the lenders for a orderly sale of shares held by the lenders.

Even as the legal battle goes on, there was some ray of hope for UB Group as its much awaited stake sale of United Spirits to Diageo got the final nod from Competition Commission of India and also from Securities and Exchange Board of India in the recent past with some riders. As and when the RBI finally gives the nod, UB Holdings is expected get as much as Rs 2,200 crore inflow, which can be used partly to assuage the lenders of Kingfisher Airlines.