The Delhi High Court on March 7 issued a issued a contempt notice to Shailendra Ajmera, the Resolution Professional (RP) of grounded airline Go First over not maintaining the leased aircraft as mandated by the court.
However, the RP has not been asked to be present in the court now. The RP must now respond to the court as to why contempt should not be initiated against him.
During the course of the hearing, the RP has agreed to hand over the task of maintenance of aircraft to the lessor. The lessor sought time to respond to this suggestion. The case will now come up for hearing on March 15.
The notice comes in a week after the court asked the RP to tell the court if he is willing to hand over the maintenance of the aircraft to the lessors or a third-party agency. Justice Tara Vitasta Ganju had also observed that it was apparent from the records that the airline's RP was unable to maintain the aircraft.
However since the court was not satisfied with the response of the RP, a contempt notice was issued.
The above transpired when the court was hearing a contempt plea by the airline's lessor alleging that the carrier's RP had wilfully refused to comply with the court's orders on maintenance of their grounded aircraft. "The RP's wilful refusal to grant the petitioner access to its aircraft records/documents is in clear and deliberate violation of the judgment dated October 12," the plea filed by DAE (SY22) 13 Ireland Designated Activity Company read.
In response to the contempt plea, the RP had said that none of the 2278 employees on the airline's rolls are reporting to work. The affidavit filed by the RP said: "As of the insolvency commencement date, the number of employees on the rolls of Go First stood at 4,621. However, as of October 10, approximately 2,278 employees remain on the rolls of the Company, out of which none are at present reporting to work." The RP also contended that with no revenue being generated by the airline, they also have financial constraints. However, the RP had offered to engage a third-party agency to maintain the aircraft that are currently in possession of the airline.
Delhi High Court litigation
Go First was admitted into insolvency resolution process in May 2023, after it filed a voluntary insolvency plea. Shortly thereafter, the lessors of the airline's 54 aircrafts moved the Delhi HC against the DGCA, asking it to direct the authority to deregister their aircrafts.
On July 5, the High Court, in an interim order, permitted the lessors to inspect and perform the maintenance work. However, a division bench of the court on July 12 modified the order to the extent that the lessors could only inspect the aircraft while the RP could carry out maintenance. The Supreme Court upheld the order of the Delhi High Court.
On October 12, the High Court permitted the lessors of the grounded airline to engage security personnel to monitor their aircraft, engine, and other parts. “A review of the documents and photographs filed by the Petitioners/Lessors show the evident cannibalisation of the Aircraft,” the high court order said.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
