Financial Technologies (FTIL) has decided to withdraw its case in the Supreme Court challenging the Bombay High Court’s refusal to grant interim relief on the ‘fit and proper’ order passed by commodity markets regulator Forward Markets Commission.

The company intends to pursue the matter in the Bombay High Court first before moving the apex court. The special leave petition, which was filed by FTIL in the Supreme Court last week, came up for hearing on Friday, but was withdrawn.

Shaneen Parikh, Partner, Amarchand & Mangaldas, in a statement said the company would pursue its writ petition and seek an expeditious hearing in the Bombay High Court, where it believes it has a good case to pursue.

In December 2013, the FMC declared the company, its promoter and a few key directors as unfit to own a stake and operate exchanges.

Advocate Mihir Kamdar, Head-Legal, at FTIL, said the petition was withdrawn from the Supreme Court so that it could be pursued on a fast track in the Bombay High Court. “We were disappointed that no interim relief was being granted on the (fit and proper) order that is sub-judice and transition(al) [valid for three years] in nature. There has not been a single substantive hearing for about one-and-a-half years,” he said.

It is extremely disappointing that the same order has been the basis to merge NSEL and FTIL under Section 396, he added.

CERC ruling confirmed

Meanwhile, the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity has confirmed a ruling passed by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission declaring FTIL as not ‘fit and proper’ to hold shares in the Indian Energy Exchange.

The ruling is unlikely to have any impact as FTIL has signed a deal with a TVS Capital Funds-led consortium, which includes Kris Gopalakrishnan, former Infosys executive Vice-Chairman, and Lakshmi Narayanan, Vice-Chairman of Cognizant, to offload its entire 25.64 per cent stake in the Indian Energy Exchange for ₹576.84 crore.

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