The Bombay High Court has given 45 more days to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) to pass the final order in the proposed merger of scam-hit National Spot Exchange Ltd (NSEL) with its parent Financial Technologies (India) Ltd (FTIL).
MCA will have to pass the final order by February 15, the court said on Wednesday. Although MCA sought two months time, the Bombay High Court has granted only 45 days’ extension.
Earlier, the Ministry had been asked to pass the final order by December 31. This is the third time that it has got an extension from the court.
Arguing on behalf of the government, Senior Counsel Jay Bhatia said there was a delay in passing the final order as Pritam Singh, Additional Secretary, MCA, who heads the committee to decide on the issue, suffered a heart attack and had to undergo surgery.
He is expected to resume duty on December 31 and take the issue forward, he said.
In October 2014, the MCA had issued a draft order to merge NSEL with its parent to recover ₹5,600-crore dues of investors who lost money in the exchange.
FTIL moved court against the order. It says the forced merger would violate the concept of limited liability, which is the fundamental principle of corporate jurisprudence.
Stakeholder consent Also, the forced merger of NSEL with FTIL will be without the consent of the stakeholders, including shareholders and creditors, of both the companies, according to FTIL.