SC stays Bombay HC order asking MMRDA to deposit full ₹1,169 crore arbitral award to Ambani's metro JV
Advt
By ,
ET Bureau
The Supreme Court has stayed a Bombay High Court order directing the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority ( MMRDA ) to deposit the entire arbitral award of ₹1,169 crore won by Mumbai Metro One Private Ltd (MMOPL), a subsidiary of Anil Ambani 's Reliance Infrastructure, in 2023.However, the apex court said the HC's direction to deposit the full award amount in favour of MMOPL will remain stayed, subject to MMRDA depositing 50 per cent of the awarded amount in the High Court.A bench led by Justice Manoj Mishra sought a response from MMOPL on MMRDA's appeal against the HC's July 10 order, which refused the latter's request for an unconditional stay on the arbitral award.The top court further clarified that the pendency of the proceedings will not preclude the HC from continuing with the hearing of the application filed by MMRDA under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act , 1996. If the HC finally decides the application in the meantime, this interim order will abide by the HC's decision.Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the state entity, argued that the HC's condition to deposit the entire awarded amount at this stage would be unduly harsh. Therefore, it was a fit case to modify the condition imposed by the High Court while granting interim relief to the Ambani firm.MMRDA, in its appeal, submitted that the HC had erred in not granting interim relief, given that the arbitral award was patently illegal and perverse, beyond the scope of the arbitration agreement, in breach of principles of natural justice, and passed without application of mind or any evidentiary basis.A majority decision of the three-member arbitral tribunal in 2023 awarded ₹992 crore plus interest to MMOPL, a special purpose vehicle (SPV) between Reliance Infrastructure (74 per cent stake) and MMRDA (26 per cent stake). The award was passed in 2023 and corrected in 2024. The JV operates Mumbai's first metro line on the Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar corridor.The Maharashtra government had in June 2006 awarded the Metro One Project to the consortium of Reliance Infrastructure and Veolia Transport SA (now Transdev Ile-de-France).Multiple disputes arose between the parties over development, design, engineering, financing, procurement, construction, operation, and maintenance of the mass rapid transit system, as well as delays in project completion. The metro rail project was delayed by over two years. MMOPL claimed project costs increased from ₹2,356 crore to ₹4,321 crore, which MMRDA contested.Accordingly, the Ambani firm invoked the arbitration clause under the Concession Agreement.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hans India
3 hours ago
- Hans India
Reliance Infra, Power hit lower circuit; drop 10 pc after ED raids on Anil Ambani firms
Mumbai: After the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raided multiple premises linked to industrialist Anil Ambani, shares of Reliance Infrastructure and Reliance Power dropped 10 per cent over two sessions, hitting their lower circuits of 5 per cent on Friday. ED conducted the raid on over 35 premises linked to Anil Ambani's Reliance Group (RAAGA Companies) during a probe into the Rs 3,000 crore Yes Bank loan fraud. Both Reliance Power and Reliance Infrastructure have issued statements distancing themselves from the investigation, saying the ED's actions mainly relate to Reliance Communications and Reliance Home Finance -- companies no longer associated with them. Reliance Power fell 5 per cent to Rs 56.72, while Reliance Infrastructure slid 5 per cent to Rs 341.85, upon which it was locked in the lower circuit. On July 23, 2024 the Reliance Infrastructure shares were trading at Rs 384 in the mid day session, since then the shares have fell sharply, now touching Rs 341.85. In the trading sessions following the raids, Reliance infrastructure shares were locked in a 5 per cent lower circuit two times. They were locked at Rs 360.05 on July 24, and today at Rs 341.85 were sealed once again. Reliance Power shares also dropped significantly, falling 7.41 per cent over the same period. Preliminary investigation by ED has revealed a well-planned and thought-out scheme to divert or siphon off public money by cheating banks, shareholders, investors and other public institutions. The offence of bribing bank officials, including Promoter of Yes Bank Limited, is also under the scanner. Allegedly, the promoters colluded for an unalwful loan diversion of around Rs 3,000 crore from Yes Bank (from 2017 to 2019). The regulator has found gross violations in Yes Bank loan approvals to RAAGA companies, such as Credit Approval Memorandums (CAMs) being backdated and investments being proposed without any due diligence/ credit analysis in violation of the bank's credit policy.
Hindustan Times
3 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
HC junks petitions challenging Maharashtra's farm procurement scheme, imposes ₹1 lakh cost
Mumbai, The Bombay High Court has dismissed petitions challenging a Maharashtra Government Resolution on the procurement and supply of certain agricultural items, terming them 'totally baseless'. HC junks petitions challenging Maharashtra's farm procurement scheme, imposes ₹ 1 lakh cost Finding no merit in the Public Interest Litigation and a writ petition filed against GR of March 12, 2024, the court also imposed a cost of one lakh on the petitioners. The pleas were dismissed by a division bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Sandeep Marne on July 22. As per the detailed order, made available on Friday, the bench ruled that the challenge to the government's decision was 'totally baseless and deserves rejection'. The court said it did not find any error in the GR concerning the procurement of five items under a special action plan for productivity enhancement and value chain development of cotton, soybean and other oilseeds. 'Thus, no interference was warranted in the tender process implemented for procurement of the said items,' it said. The March 12, 2024, GR details the procurement and supply of five items – battery-operated sprayers, nano urea, nano D, metaldehyde pesticide, and cotton storage bags – to farmers. 'The said petition is filed by an association of manufacturers of sprayers, who have no locus standi to challenge implementation of special action plan by the state government,' the bench said. The court said that to protect their private interest, manufacturers and traders cannot be permitted to challenge the broader scheme to facilitate the productivity enhancement of the listed crop. The petitioners had contended that the five items were removed from an earlier GR dated December 5, 2016, which allowed farm subsidies through the Direct Benefit Transfer scheme and were included in the new GR, which provides for their procurement through state agencies. The state agencies, including Maharashtra Agro Industries Development Corporation Limited and Maharashtra State Powerloom Corporation Limited, procured these items at 'exorbitant' rates, claimed the PIL. Senior advocate, Nikhil Sakhardande, who represented the petitioners, told the court that the DBT scheme was more beneficial to farmers, allowing them to purchase items at cheaper rates from local traders. The new system favoured large contractors, he argued. Appearing for the state government, senior advocate V R Dhond contended that the earlier GR operated under different objectives. He stated that the March 2024 GR was aimed at enhancing productivity and value chain development of cotton, soybean and other oilseed crops, which he called a broader programme not limited to just product procurement. The HC accepted the state's arguments and said the two GRs operate in 'completely different and independent spheres' with distinct objectives. The petitioners had 'erroneously mixed up the two GRs which have no nexus with each other', it held. Further, the bench held that these 'baseless' petitions created hurdles in the effective implementation of the plan, aimed at giving impetus to the cultivation of specified crops and benefiting farmers. 'For this reason also, while dismissing the petitions, we are inclined to impose costs on the petitioners,' the court said. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Hindustan Times
4 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Nearly 4,000 MT of coal vanishes from 2 sites in Meghalaya, HC seeks accountability
Shillong, The High Court of Meghalaya has sought accountability from the state government and its agencies after nearly 4,000 metric tonnes of illegally mined coal vanished from two coal depots in the state—Rajaju and Diengngan villages—despite the stock being previously recorded through official surveys. Nearly 4,000 MT of coal vanishes from 2 sites in Meghalaya, HC seeks accountability In a scathing observation, the High Court bench headed by Justice HS Thangkhiew, which heard the matter on Thursday, has asked authorities to identify the individuals or officials responsible for allowing the disappearance of coal that had already been detected and flagged for action. The revelation comes from the 31st interim report submitted by the Justice BP Katakey Committee, which is monitoring coal mining and transportation issues in the state. The report states that during ground verification, only 2.5 MT of coal was found at Diengngan against the 1,839.03 MT earlier recorded by the Meghalaya Basin Development Authority , while at Rajaju, just 8 MT remained out of the 2,121.62 MT recorded. The court observed that this illegal coal was detected much earlier, and yet, "unidentified persons" managed to lift and transport the coal, raising serious questions about enforcement on the ground. It directed the state to take urgent action to trace those responsible and ensure officials under whose watch the lapse occurred are held to account. Apart from the vanishing coal, the report also highlighted several unresolved issues around the disposal of re-assessed and re-verified inventoried coal stockpiled at Coal India Limited depots. Following the court's order dated June 2, meetings were held with various stakeholders, including CIL, to formulate a more reliable and expeditious method of auctioning the remaining inventoried coal. CIL submitted four proposals, three of which are already part of the Revised Comprehensive Plan, 2022, even as the committee has recommended the inclusion of two new clauses mandating that full payment must be made within 120 days, and that coal be lifted within 120 days of full payment. Failure to comply would result in bid cancellation, forfeiture of the Earnest Money Deposit , and re-auctioning of the coal. To make the auction process more inclusive and effective, the committee has also recommended that meetings be convened with local authorised coal-based industries to encourage their participation. It also proposed offering concessional rates to bulk consumers besides a suggestion was also made by CIL that the auction process be temporarily paused until all pending issues are resolved. The court noted that the state has accepted this recommendation and has currently put fresh auctions of inventoried coal on hold. The committee also examined 21 applications from individuals claiming that their coal stocks were not reflected in the UAV survey conducted by M/s Garuda UAV and MBDA. Of these, only one claim was found to be genuine, the court observed. Fourteen applicants' coal stocks could not be matched with the survey coordinates, six were not supported by affidavits submitted to the Supreme Court, and one individual's coal was not part of the official inventory, the court noted. The high court has asked the state to clarify what action has been taken in response to these applications—whether police complaints or FIRs under the Mines and Minerals Act, 1957, have been filed—and to report the outcomes. A status report filed by the state in response to the Committee's 30th Interim Report confirmed that FIRs had been filed in connection with the missing coal in Rajaju and Diengngan, as well as in South Garo Hills, but provided no further details on investigation or accountability. The committee has directed deputy commissioners to cross-check the physical coal stock with UAV survey data and lodge FIRs in cases of significant discrepancies. The report also addressed the issue of mismatch between truck numbers and transport challans, stating the discrepancy arose from mechanical breakdowns and reloading of coal onto alternate vehicles, and not from fraudulent documentation. Overloading concerns are reportedly being addressed by enforcement teams. On the reported death of a coal miner in Musiang village, a police report has found the claim to be false. Regarding ongoing efforts to regulate and monitor coal-based industries, the report noted that the source audit of coke oven plants is still in progress. The Advocate General has assured the court that the audit findings will be placed on record at the next hearing. As challenges continue with the implementation of Smart Check Gates at mining and transport points, the committee noted that integration with customs check gates is being actively explored to strengthen coal movement monitoring. The report also recorded progress in the recovery of demurrage charges, and a total of ₹13.49 lakh has been realised so far, with ₹5.01 lakh pending. Notices have been issued to recover the outstanding amount, the court was informed. Taking into account the multiple pending issues related to coal auction, illegal mining, missing coal stocks, and mine closures, the court has scheduled the matter for further hearing on August 25, and directed that copies of the 31st interim report be made available to all relevant parties for compliance and further action. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
