High Court upholds Amazon plea to block Future Group’s Rs 24,713 crore deal with Reliance

<p>
<strong>Delhi High Court has restrained Future Group chief Kishore Biyani from going ahead with the Rs 24,713 crore sale of his retail business to Reliance Industries Ltd in response to Amazon.com Inc’s petition challenging the deal.</strong></p>
<p>
Amazon has alleged that Future Group has violated certain contracts signed with it earlier, by selling its retail assets to Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries last year. However, Future denies any wrongdoing.</p>
<p>
The legal battle over Future Group’s assets involves billionaires Jeff Bezos of Amazon and Mukesh Ambani of Reliance as their companies have emerged as staunch rivals in  India’s fast growing organised retail sector.</p>
<p>
While the cases are being fought at various forums, Amazon had in one Delhi High Court case urged the court to detain Biyani in a civil prison for allegedly violating an arbitrator’s order that had blocked the transaction from proceeding.</p>
<p>
On Thursday, the judge issued a “show cause” notice to Biyani and other respondents in the case to explain why they should not be sent to civil prison for not obeying the arbitrator’s directive.</p>
<p>
Justice J.R. Midha also said Biyani and other respondents cannot dispose their assets. “The assets … are hereby attached,” the order said.</p>
<p>
Future Group said in a statement: "The Delhi High Court order has no bearing on the status quo of the case since it is already in Supreme Court, where the next hearing is expected to be in April… NCLT is allowed to continue its proceedings but the same shall not culminate in any final order of the sanction of the scheme."</p>