New Delhi: The National Company Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Friday deferred till 7 August hearing in a plea filed by Jet Airways’ lenders, led by State Bank of India, against the airline’s winning bidder Jalan Kalrock consortium to recover pending dues. During the hearing today, banks said that the Jalan Kalrock consortium has not infused any money to repay creditors while the latter said the lenders have thwarted transfer of ownership and challenged efforts to commence operations at the airline. The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in January allowed the transfer of ownership of Jet Airways to Jalan Kalrock consortium. Additional solicitor general N Venkatraman, representing the lenders, contended that the NCLT had granted permission to consortium to take ownership of Jet Airways based on specific conditions. However, he said, the consortium has failed to meet those conditions. Venkatraman raised concerns over the consortium’s inaction, stating that they have not released funds nor initiated operations. He highlighted that the Air Operator’s Certificate (AoC) provided to the consortium had limited validity, and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is unlikely to grant an extension. In response, senior lawyer Krishnendu Dutta for the consortium said that the Committee of Creditors had been preventing them from commencing operations, even after obtaining all necessary permissions from regulatory authorities and the government. He urged the tribunal to facilitate the earliest commencement of operations for Jet Airways, warning that failure to do so could result in the allocation of valuable slots to other airlines. On 5 July, the Committee of Creditors had told the Supreme Court that it might be more prudent to wind up the airline, given they have not been repaid, and no funds infused into the debt-laden airline. Lenders have infused approximately 400 crore of public money into the airline, which includes settling dues. According to the January order by the Mumbai bench of the tribunal, the effective date of the resolution plan was taken as 16 November. As a result, the consortium has six months from the said date to make payments to lenders. On 22 June 2021, the NCLT in its order had approved the resolution plan submitted by the Jalan-Kalrock consortium. The consortium comprises UAE-based non-resident Indian Murari Lal Jalan, who will hold shares in Jet Airways in his personal capacity, and Florian Fritsch who will hold shares through his investment holding company Kalrock Capital Partners Ltd, Cayman. Jet Airways stopped flying in April 2019 after running into financial difficulties. However, ownership transfer has been hanging fire amid continuing differences between the lenders and the consortium. Related Premium Stories