Delhi HC asks RIL, BG to disclose assets on Centre plea

The Delhi High Court has asked Reliance Industries (RIL) and British Gas (BG) to disclose their assets on the central government's plea for directions to both companies not to dispose of their assets.

The government has sought to restrain the two companies from disposing of their assets as they have allegedly failed to pay it USD 3,856,734,582 as per an arbitral award in favour of the Centre in relation to the Panna-Mukta and Tapti (PMT) production-sharing contracts.

Justice J R Midha has directed the two companies to file an affidavit of their assets in accordance with the new format of form 16A under the Civil Procedure Code (CPC) that the high court has drafted in a recent judgement.

Earlier on November 22, the high court had directed the two companies to file their affidavits of assets in form 16A of CPC and had listed the matter for compliance on December 20.

On December 20, the court directed the companies to file the affidavits according to the new format of form 16A.

The direction had come on the government's application to restrain the two companies from disposing of their assets.

The application was filed in a petition moved by the government for execution of the arbitral award in its favour.

The Centre in its application, moved through central government standing counsel Anurag Ahluwalia, has alleged that RIL is under a huge group debt and it was in the process of selling or transferring or alienating its assets and creating third-party interest in the movable and immovable properties to cover its liabilities.

It has said in the application that if RIL liquidates its assets and properties, there would be nothing left for the government to execute the arbitral award.