Supreme Court Says Amazon Is Trying To Drag The Case Against Future
Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.
View all posts by this Author
By Linus Garg
First publised on 2022-02-09 08:31:49
About the Author
Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.
View all posts by this Author
That Amazon is trying to unnecessarily drag the Future Retail (FRL) case in courts became evident yesterday when senior advocate Nakul Dewan, representing the company, sought the Supreme Court's permission to file written submission before the court in the matter of a consortium of banks seeking to invoke the IBC against FRL even as the final hearing in the matter is complete and the court has already reserved its judgment.
The bench was furious. It first took Amazon to task for the delay and then asked if it was proper for any party to file written submissions as and when it wished. It also reminded Dewan that the other party has to be given notice and they have to agree to the late submission. Obviously, FRL's counsel K V Vishwanathan opposed Amazon's plea.
Dewan made another blunder which once again drew the ire of the bench. He submitted that the written submission sought to be submitted was a summary of the arguments presented by senior advocate Gopal Subramaniam. The court was livid and said "you seem to have a feeling that we judges can't understand the arguments of senior advocates. It is such a small matter." It went on to say that "this is nothing but a tactic to drag the matter. It is a luxury litigation. Such cases should not be listed for hearing."
Actually Amazon has been spooked by the intervention of the bank consortium. It knows that if the IBC is invoked, the matter will no longer be of what coupons Amazon holds or what 'right to first refusal' it has or what arbitration award it has received in its favour. The matter will then be decided as per the terms of the IBC and anyone who wishes to acquire the assets of FRL will have to clear it with the resolution professional and the committee of lenders. Hence, Amazon will be treated as financial creditor for the sums FRL owes to it. Competitive bidding, as suggested by the bank consortium, will come into play. Since Reliance has already offered Rs 27000cr for the assets of FRL against the Rs 7000cr offered by Amazon, the latter knows it stands no chance in the bidding process unless its ups its offer by more than three times.
