RIL deal: Amazon asks NCLT not to allow Future Group shareholders' meet

Amazon has approached the National Company Law tribunal (NCLT) urging it to not allow assemblage of any meeting of Future Group's shareholders or creditors for approval of its projected Rs 24,713 crore deal with Reliance Industries.

Last week filed an application was filed by Amazon before the Mumbai-bench of the NCLT.

The NCLT reserved the order for the arrangement scheme that involves consolidating the retail and wholesale sector of Future Group and shifting it to Reliance Industries in the Rs 24,713 crore deal announced last year in August.

Amazon, in its application -- a copy of that was seen by PTI -- conversant the NCLT that it has filed an SLP (special leave petition) before the Supreme Court against an order of the Division Bench of the Delhi high court dated Feb 8.

The court had on Feb 8 raised the 'status quo' granted over the deal by a single-member bench of the court.

Amazon has asked NCLT to "refrain from guiding any meetings of the shareholders and creditors of the businesses from considering such scheme, unfinished the proceedings in SIAC Arbitration...".

Apart from this The US-based e-commerce asked, till the ultimate award is granted in the Singapore arbitration, restrain Future Retail from taking any steps to further the deal with Reliance.

"Amazon conjointly fears that the petition by Future seeks to mislead this tribunal into breaching the order glided by the Emergency arbitrator dated Oct 25, 2020, in SIAC," it stated.

Amazon and Future didn't answer e-mailed queries on the matter.

The Future-Reliance Agreement has already been cleared by CCI, SEBI and the bourses.. The scheme of arrangement is currently awaiting nod from the NCLT and shareholders.

In October last year, Amazon took the Future group to arbitration at the SIAC, alleging that by entering into the agreement with rival Reliance, Future had broken a contract with it.

SIAC passed an interim award on Oct 25, 2020, in favour of Amazon, which barred Future Retail from taking any action to get rid of or restrain its assets or issue any securities to obtain a restricted party's funding.

Earlier this year, a three-member tribunal comprising Singaporean lawyer Michael Hwang, Albert van den Berg and Jan Paulsson was formed at the SIAC to pass a final order.