India on Thursday said it would like to see ‘fulfilment’ of all legal processes and adherence to all relevant contracts and agreements regarding the compensation in the $500 million GMR Male airport project. Reacting to the verdict of a Singapore court which ruled that the Maldives government can take back the Male Airport from the private firm, Ministry of External Affairs official spokesman Syed Akbaruddin said the MEA as well as the Indian High Commission in Male is studying the judgement and their lawyers need to understand it.
Pointing out that there are two issues in the case — one sovereign right of a nation and other legality of the agreement which was linked to compensation to GMR and its associates in Malaysia — he said the latter part has not been ‘affected or responded’ in Thursday’s judgement.
‘These issues are not affected with judgement or not responded to.... Fulfilment of all legal process and requirement is what we want to see in this case and we hope that all relevant contracts and agreements would be adhered to and all legal process are carried through,’ he said. Meanwhile, India has appointed Rajeev Shahare as the new High Commissioner to Maldives replacing incumbent D M Mulay. Akbaruddin said Mulay has completed three years and seven months and his appointment to New York is routine.
SINGAPORE COURT KNOCKS GMR OUT OF MALDIVES AIRPORT
In yet another setback to embattled infrastructure major GMR, a Singapore court on Thursday ruled that the Maldives Government can take back the Male International Airport from the private firm. 'The Singapore Court of Appeal has passed a judgement that the Maldives Government has the authority to take back the airport,' Maldives President Mohamed Waheed's Press Secretary Masood Imad said in Male.'Maldives will go ahead with the transfer as scheduled,' he added.
Maldives had in a surprise move on November 27 terminated the over $500 million contract awarded to GMR during the previous regime of Mohamed Nasheed to upgrade the Male airport and build a new terminal. The government had said it was terminating the contract because it was signed under 'dubious conditions' and was void, a charge hotly contested by the infrastructure major.
Following the termination, GMR had approached the Singapore High Court which had stayed the scrapping of the contract. However, the Maldives government remained defiant and asserted that it would take over the airport from GMR on Saturday, a day after the notice period ends. After Thursday's ruling, Imad said, 'We are not doing anything against the law. We are just following the law. Now, even the Singapore court has given us permission to go ahead.'
As per the project contract, in case of any differences between parties, the law of either Singapore or UK would apply. On the Singapore court's judgement, a GMR spokesperson said, ‘We are studying the oral order of the Honourable Singapore Court of Appeals. We would be able to comment only after studying the final written order.’
Taken by 'surprise' over the GMR issue, India had conveyed to Maldives that the move will have serious consequences on bilateral ties as it is considering a 'series of options', including slowing down cooperative programmes, if the legal course is not followed. India acknowledges that the Maldivian government's decision to cancel GMR's contract for building Male airport is a domestic issue but it is upset over the 'anti-India sentiment being whipped up' in connection with the issue there.
Sources said the possibility of some external forces playing a role in the cancellation of the airport contract cannot be ruled out, even though there is no clear evidence of a Chinese angle so far.
Pointing out that there are two issues in the case — one sovereign right of a nation and other legality of the agreement which was linked to compensation to GMR and its associates in Malaysia — he said the latter part has not been ‘affected or responded’ in Thursday’s judgement.
‘These issues are not affected with judgement or not responded to.... Fulfilment of all legal process and requirement is what we want to see in this case and we hope that all relevant contracts and agreements would be adhered to and all legal process are carried through,’ he said. Meanwhile, India has appointed Rajeev Shahare as the new High Commissioner to Maldives replacing incumbent D M Mulay. Akbaruddin said Mulay has completed three years and seven months and his appointment to New York is routine.
SINGAPORE COURT KNOCKS GMR OUT OF MALDIVES AIRPORT
In yet another setback to embattled infrastructure major GMR, a Singapore court on Thursday ruled that the Maldives Government can take back the Male International Airport from the private firm. 'The Singapore Court of Appeal has passed a judgement that the Maldives Government has the authority to take back the airport,' Maldives President Mohamed Waheed's Press Secretary Masood Imad said in Male.'Maldives will go ahead with the transfer as scheduled,' he added.
Maldives had in a surprise move on November 27 terminated the over $500 million contract awarded to GMR during the previous regime of Mohamed Nasheed to upgrade the Male airport and build a new terminal. The government had said it was terminating the contract because it was signed under 'dubious conditions' and was void, a charge hotly contested by the infrastructure major.
Following the termination, GMR had approached the Singapore High Court which had stayed the scrapping of the contract. However, the Maldives government remained defiant and asserted that it would take over the airport from GMR on Saturday, a day after the notice period ends. After Thursday's ruling, Imad said, 'We are not doing anything against the law. We are just following the law. Now, even the Singapore court has given us permission to go ahead.'
As per the project contract, in case of any differences between parties, the law of either Singapore or UK would apply. On the Singapore court's judgement, a GMR spokesperson said, ‘We are studying the oral order of the Honourable Singapore Court of Appeals. We would be able to comment only after studying the final written order.’
Taken by 'surprise' over the GMR issue, India had conveyed to Maldives that the move will have serious consequences on bilateral ties as it is considering a 'series of options', including slowing down cooperative programmes, if the legal course is not followed. India acknowledges that the Maldivian government's decision to cancel GMR's contract for building Male airport is a domestic issue but it is upset over the 'anti-India sentiment being whipped up' in connection with the issue there.
Sources said the possibility of some external forces playing a role in the cancellation of the airport contract cannot be ruled out, even though there is no clear evidence of a Chinese angle so far.