Apex Court sets aside Delhi HC orders, remands cases back for fresh decision
New Delhi: In a relief to Future group, the Supreme Court Tuesday set aside three Delhi High Court orders including attachment of properties of the firm and its directors and the refusal to grant a stay on the final arbitral award which had restrained Future Retail Ltd (FRL) from going ahead with its Rs 24,731 crore merger deal with Reliance Retail and ordered fresh adjudication.
Observing that natural justice is the sworn enemy of unfairness , the top court found fault with the orders of the high court and said that Future Coupons Private Ltd (FCPL) and FRL were not provided sufficient opportunities while dealing with the pleas of US e-commerce major Amazon over the merger deal.
It is well known that natural justice is the sworn enemy of unfairness. It is expected of the Courts to be cautious and afford a reasonable opportunity to parties, especially in commercial matters having a serious impact on the economy and employment of thousands of people. Coming to the facts herein, the opportunity provided to the appellants herein was insufficient, and cannot be upheld in the eyes of law, a bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana said.
The bench, also comprising Justices A S Bopanna and Hima Kohli, set aside the high court's order of February 2 last year, by which it had directed FRL to maintain the status quo concerning the merger deal.
The March 18, 2021 order of the high court, upholding the EA's award, imposing a cost of Rs 20 lakh on it as well as its directors and attaching their properties, has also been set aside by the top court which remanded the pleas of Future group firms relating to arbitral award on the merger deal with Reliance Retail back to the Delhi High Court.
The 28-page judgement, penned by the CJI, also quashed the October 29, 2021 order of the high court declining a stay on an arbitration tribunal decision refusing to interfere with the Emergency Award (EA) of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC).
The EA had restrained FRL from going ahead with the merger deal.
In view of the above, we order: Setting aside of impugned orders dated February 02, 2021... and March 18, 2021 (2nd impugned order). Setting aside of 3rd impugned order dated October 29, 2021...The learned Single Judge (of HC) shall reconsider the issues and pass appropriate orders on its own merits, uninfluenced by any observation made herein, it ordered.
