Sahara accuses Jet of breach of contract; seeks Rs 2,000 cr

Charging Jet Airways with violating the Sahara airline takeover deal agreement, Sahara Commercial Corporation in Mumbai told Bombay HC the Naresh Goyal-led airline was liable to pay Rs 2,000 crore instead of the renegotiated amount of Rs 1,450 crore agreed between them.

Charging Jet Airways with violating the Sahara airline takeover deal agreement, Sahara Commercial Corporation in Mumbai told Bombay High Court the Naresh Goyal-led airline was liable to pay Rs 2,000 crore instead of the renegotiated amount of Rs 1,450 crore agreed between them.

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Sahara filed an affidavit in reply to Jet's chamber summons, saying the takeover price had been brought down to Rs 1,450 crore from Rs 2,000 provided Jet Airways would not default on payment. But this had been done and therefore concession on the takeover deal was not tenable.

The matter was adjourned to April 13 after Jet Airways counsel Janak Dwarkadas sought time to file a rejoinder to Sahara's application.

Jet bought Sahara Airlines from Sahara Group in April 2007 for Rs 1,450 crore after an arbitration award. It paid Rs 900 crore and agreed to pay the balance in four installments.

Jet's lawyer, on the last hearing, had said that in March 2008, Income Tax department demanded tax dues of Rs 107 crore from Sahara India Airlines (now called JetLite).

According to Jet, this amount was due from Sahara Group as it pertained to the period before the acquisition.

So last March, while paying Sahara the installment of Rs 137 crore, Jet deducted Rs 37 crore against the I-T dues. This year too, Jet deducted Rs 50 crore on the same account.

Dwarkadas said that Sahara has now taken a stand that it is not liable to pay the I-T dues.