HC gives last chance to Jet, Sahara to settle dispute

The Bombay High Court today gave Jet Airways and Sahara Group one last chance to amicably resolve a payment dispute over acquisition of Sahara Airlines by Jet, but if they squander this opportunity the court would step in with its ruling on July 15.     

Justice Dhananjay Chandrachud said both parties are being given a final chance to sit across the table and arrive at a consensus by July 15.     

Earlier, the High Court had given an opportunity to both sides to settle their dispute, but Jet and Sahara have so far not been able to meet formally for thrashing out differences over the deal, although sources said talks between senior executives had failed to yield any solution.     

Jet's counsel Janak Dwarkadas informed the court today that both sides were keen to resolve the dispute.     

"We are willing to sit across the table and fix it up," he said.     

The court took on record an order passed by Income Tax Tribunal reducing the tax liability of JetLite, erstwhile Sahara Airlines, from Rs 820 crore to Rs 380 crore.     

SICCL had in March filed a petition, claiming that the Naresh Goyal-owned airline had defaulted on the instalment amount due as payment for acquisition of Sahara Airlines, now JetLite, hence it was liable to pay original deal amount of Rs 2,000 crore and not re-negotiated amount of Rs 1,450 crore.

As Sahara contended that Jet had not paid the instalments in full, Jet claimed that it had paid an amount of Rs 100 crore as the first instalment, deducting Rs 37.50 crore as tax dues.     

On the second instalment, it deducted another Rs 50 crore. This was done after the Income-Tax Department raised a tax demand of Rs 107 crore on the then Sahara Airlines, which, Jet claimed, is for a period prior to its takeover of Sahara.     

Jet acquired Sahara Airlines in 2007 for Rs 1,450 crore. It paid Rs 900 crore in cash; and the rest, an amount of Rs 550 crore, was to be paid in four annual instalments of Rs 137.50 crore each beginning March 2008.     

During the course of hearing, Jet's counsel had said that they had made an offer for settlement through intermediaries, but the same was contested by Sahara's counsel.     

Jet's Chairman Naresh Goyal and Sahara's Executive Director Pallab Agarwal had met earlier this month, but no settlement could be worked out. There was another meeting of senior executives of the two sides but to the same result.