SpiceJet has escalated its legal battle to the Supreme Court, seeking an urgent hearing against a Delhi High Court ruling that mandates the grounding of three of its engines due to persistent payment failures to lessors.
On Thursday, the low-cost carrier’s legal team requested an expedited review, and Chief Justice DY Chandrachud promptly reviewed the case.
The CJI directed SpiceJet’s counsel to formally submit a request to the apex court’s registry to expedite the case.
Earlier this week, the Delhi High Court’s division bench denied SpiceJet’s plea to overturn a previous directive requiring the airline to ground the engines.
The initial order, issued by Justice Manmeet Singh Arora, had mandated that the engines be grounded by 16 February and returned to the lessors within 15 days.
Justice Arora’s ruling emphasized the airline’s financial distress, stating, “The defendant (SpiceJet) is a defaulter and has no legal and contractual right to continue the use of the engines. The inability of the defendant to pay the admitted outstanding dues is writ large on the face of the record and in fact permitting the defendant to continue the use of the engines without payment would only cause financial distress to the plaintiff (lessors).”
On 29 May, SpiceJet agreed to clear overdue lease payments and maintain weekly payments, which allowed it to retain the engines.
However, the Delhi High Court clarified that the return of the engines does not exempt the airline from settling the accrued dues.
As SpiceJet pushes for a swift Supreme Court review, the outcome could significantly impact the airline’s operational capabilities and financial stability.
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