SpiceJet offers to pay Rs 600 crore in cash to Kalanithi Maran, KAL Airways

"The Court has instructed the other side to examine SpiceJet's request and has scheduled the issue for 14 February 2022," the official stated.  

Domestic carrier SpiceJet on Wednesday said that it has offered to pay Rs 600 crore in cash in the share transfer case with Kalanithi Maran and his firm KAL Airways for a full and final settlement of all disputes, after the Supreme Court asked the airline's former promoter to consider the airline's settlement offer.

A SpiceJet spokeswoman stated that the offer was made at today's Supreme Court hearing, and that SpiceJet had already paid Rs 308 crore in cash and submitted a bank guarantee of Rs 270 crore out of the primary sum of Rs 578 crore granted in arbitration. "The Court has instructed the other side to examine SpiceJet's request and has scheduled the issue for 14 February 2022," the official stated.

The spokesperson also stated that Mukul Rohatgi, Senior Counsel representing SpiceJet, proposed paying the bank guarantee equivalent amount of Rs 270 crore in cash and topping it up with an additional Rs 22 crore, bringing the total payout to Rs 600 crore as the full and final settlement of all disputes between the parties.

Previously, an arbitration tribunal comprised of three retired Supreme Court justices, Arijit Pasayat, Hemant Laxman Gokhale, and KSP Radhakrishnan, had unanimously dismissed Kalanithi Maran and Kal Airways' damages suit against SpiceJet.

The dispute erupted when co-founder Ajay Singh reclaimed control of the airline in February 2015, in the midst of a financial crisis. In February 2015, Maran and KAL Airways handed to Singh their whole 350.4 million equity shares in SpiceJet, equating to a 58.46% ownership in the airline.