Interim Orders Restraining IDBI Trusteeship From Selling Future Retails Shares To Continue: SC

The Supreme Court on Friday directed that the ad-interim protection granted to Future Retail by Bombay High Court, wherein it restrained IDBI Trusteeship & UBS Bank from invoking & selling shares of Future Retail Ltd shall continue till May 4. 

A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul & B.R. Gavai refused to interfere in the order of ad-interim protection passed by the Bombay High Court on March 30 in which IDBI Trusteeship Services Limited was barred from invoking pledged shares of Future Retail on behalf of UBS AG til May 4.

A battery of lawyers appeared in the matter. Senior Advocate KV Vishwanathan & Advocate-on-Record Divyam Agarwal, Advocate Amar Gupta, Advocate Varghese Thomas, Hormuz Mehta, Yohaan Limatwala & Pallavi Kumar appeared for the petitioner(s).

Senior Advocates Mukul Rohatgi, Vikram Nankani, Vineet Naik & Advocates Ameet Naik, Mahesh Agarwal, Harvardhan Jha, Yugandhara Pawar Jha appeared for the Respondent(s).

The Bombay High Court's order came in light of shares of Future group companies plummeting due to the volatile markets that have been the norm amid the Coronavirus outbreak and restrictions thereon.

Future group had petitioned the high court after IDBI Trusteeship Services invoked the pledged shares. Future Corp is the holding company of Rural Fairprice and a promoter shareholder of Future Retail. IDBI Trusteeship had invoked 8% of shares of Future Retail.

Justice KK Tated while granting ad-interim relief to Future Group, added "it is to be noted that when debenture trust deed was executed, market value of the shares was Rs. 350 per share, and because of COVID19, share market has collapsed and per share comes below Rs. 100"

The bench had noted that,

"Considering the present situation of market and covid19, I am of the opinion that plaintiffs are required ad-interim protection till the next date" , which is now May 4.