SpiceJet completes ₹100 crore payment to Kal Airways

livemint.com:

₹100 crore to Sun Group chairman Kalanithi Maran as per the Delhi High Court's order regarding the execution of an arbitral award. On Monday, SpiceJet had presented a cheque for ₹37.5 crore to Maran in court. However, Maran's counsel had declined it and requested SpiceJet to make a bank transfer.

Later, in a statement, the troubled airline said it has made payment of of ₹77.5 crore and pledged to pay the remaining amount on Tuesday. On 24 August, the Delhi high court had asked the airline to pay off ₹100 crore to Maran by 10 September. SpiceJet had told the court on Monday that it couldn't meet the payment deadline due to bank holidays on 9 September and 10 September.

SpiceJet owes ₹397 crore to Maran, and the court is scheduled to hear the rest of the payment case on 3 October. In this arbitration award execution case, the Maran side had claimed that SpiceJet had forfeited its right to be heard in court by willfully disobeying orders. They requested the court to seize the entire profit of ₹204 crore from SpiceJet, along with future profits if the debt is not paid.

In response, SpiceJet argued that demanding immediate payment could push the airline into insolvency, which wouldn't benefit the Marans, as they would become operational creditors. SpiceJet also stated about its financial difficulties arose from the various factors, including the purchase of Boeing 737 Max aircraft disallowed for flights by regulators, losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and increased fuel prices due to the Ukraine conflict. The Delhi High Court, in its order on 31 July 31, upheld the arbitration award and directed the low-cost carrier and its owner, Ajay Singh, to reimburse ₹579 crore plus interest to Kalanithi Maran, the airline’s former