Supreme Court dismisses Maran's plea seeking ₹1,323 crore damages from SpiceJet
A bench of Justices P. S. Narasimha and Atul S. Chandurkar refused to interfere with the high court's decision.
Maran and KAL Airways had challenged the Delhi High Court's 23 May order that had dismissed their appeals due to delays. The division bench of Justices C. Hari Shankar and Ajay Digpaul had refused to condone a 55-day delay in filing and a 226-day delay in re-filing their appeals, calling their conduct a 'calculated gamble' and accusing them of deliberately concealing information from the court and SpiceJet.
Condonation of delay refers to seeking the court's permission to file a case or appeal after the legal deadline has lapsed. Under the Limitation Act, parties typically have 90 days to file an appeal from a single judge's decision to a division bench. If they miss this deadline, they must explain the delay to seek condonation, which the Delhi High Court did not accept in this case.
In 2015, Maran and KAL Airways transferred their entire stake in SpiceJet to Ajay Singh for a nominal ₹ 2 amid a financial crisis that had nearly shut the airline. As part of the deal, Singh, who became SpiceJet's chairman and managing director, took over liabilities worth ₹ 1,500 crore.
Maran and KAL Airways had also paid ₹ 679 crore to SpiceJet for issuing convertible warrants and preference shares. However, these were never issued under Singh's management, prompting Maran to approach the Delhi High Court in 2017 seeking a refund.
In July 2018, an arbitration panel of three retired Supreme Court judges rejected Maran's claim for ₹ 1,323 crore in damages but ordered a refund of ₹ 579 crore plus interest. Both sides challenged parts of this award under the Arbitration Act in the Delhi High Court.
In 2023, Justice Chandra Dhari Singh upheld the arbitral award, directing SpiceJet and Singh to refund ₹ 308 crore for warrants and ₹ 270 crore for preference shares, along with applicable interest.
SpiceJet challenged this ruling before a division bench. In May 2024, the division bench granted relief to SpiceJet by remanding the case to the single judge for fresh consideration, putting the ₹ 270 crore refund on hold.
Maran and KAL Airways approached the Supreme Court against this remand decision, but their plea was dismissed in July 2024. They then refiled their long-pending appeals against the single judge's 2023 order, leading to the high court division bench's May 2025 dismissal due to delays.
In a stock exchange filing on 26 May, SpiceJet welcomed the high court's decision.
'These claims were thoroughly examined and rejected by a panel of three retired Supreme Court judges. KAL Airways and Kalanithi Maran then appealed to the single judge bench of the Delhi High Court seeking the same amount in damages, which was also rejected by the court,' the airline said.
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