 "Spicejet")
SpiceJet on Wednesday said it will seek a refund of Rs 450 crore from its former promoter Kalanithi Maran after the Delhi High Court last week ruled in the airline's favour in a protracted share transfer dispute.
Dismissing SpiceJet's claim, Maran's firm KAL Airways stated that the Delhi HC order did not make any observations regarding the refund, and therefore, any claim seeking the return of money "does not arise at all".
"Any suggestion that the airline is entitled to a refund is grossly misconceived and intended to cause mischief and to mislead the public, particularly investors," KAL Airways said in a statement on Wednesday evening. SpiceJet's share price went up by 1.67 per cent on Wednesday to Rs 62.02.
In a statement on Wednesday morning, SpiceJet said it had paid Rs 730 crore to Maran and KAL Airways – Rs 580 crore in principal and Rs 150 crore as interest – according to an arbitration tribunal's order in 2018 that was upheld by a single-judge bench in 2023. A division bench of the Delhi High Court overturned that ruling on May 17, paving the way for SpiceJet to seek a refund of Rs 450 crore, it claimed.
KAL Airways, on Wednesday evening, responded to SpiceJet's claim, stating that the division bench's order "specifically focused" on reviewing the correctness of the single judge's decision, and has not rendered any decision on the 2018 arbitral award. This means that there is no stay on the execution of the award as of date, it claimed.
"The division bench has not opined that the award is wrong per se. The division bench has merely required further elaboration on certain specific issues, suggesting that the single judge consider these observations in reassessing the award's validity," it mentioned.
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The bench has "neither made any observation nor given any finding" regarding the refund already paid to KAL Airways and Maran by SpiceJet, it stated.
"Therefore, any claim seeking the return of the money already paid to KAL Airways and Mr. Maran, under the directions of the Hon'ble Supreme Court as well as the Hon'ble High Court, does not arise at all," it mentioned.
KAL Airways mentioned that, at this time, it is diligently and vigorously pursuing the execution of the 2018 arbitral award, seeking a refund of the pending dues amounting to Rs 353.50 crore.
For the last several quarters, SpiceJet has been grappling with a cash crunch amid multiple legal battles over unpaid dues to aircraft lessors, engine lessors, lenders and Maran.
Aviation consultancy CAPA India had in December stated that SpiceJet's resurgence, once the new funding is in place, has the potential to disrupt the Indian aviation market as the airline will bring its grounded aircraft back into service and lease more planes to regain competitive relevance.
Aviation analysts expect the airline's prospects to brighten once the fresh funding of Rs 2,241 crore approved by shareholders earlier this year is fully in place. SpiceJet has raised around Rs 1,060 crore through two tranches of a preferential equity issue.
The airline said it will use the Rs 2,241 crore it is raising from shareholders to pay statutory dues like TDS, GST, provident fund, settle past creditor payments, unground grounded aircraft, acquire new planes, pay for aviation turbine fuel and employee salaries, and general corporate purposes.
