Monday, September 18 2006 12:42 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Mumbai: Bombay High Court today (Sept 18, 2006) adjourned for next Thursday, hearing on an arbitration petition filed by private carrier Jet Airways in connection with the failed deal to takeover rival Air Sahara.

"The petition will be heard on September 21 considering the urgency of the matter," Jet Airways counsel Janak Dwarkadas told reporters here after Justice D K Deshmukh listed the matter for hearing on Thursday.

He said all cases related to the failed Rs 22 billion deal have been transferred and would be heard by the Bombay High Court following a direction from the Supreme Court in this regard.

Jet Airways submitted that it was losing Rs 2.2 million per day on account of its funds being locked due to the collapsed deal.

As part of the deal, reached in January, Jet had paid Rs 1.8 billion for revival of Air Sahara and Rs 5 billion in lieu of Air Sahara shares pledged with it, besides deposited Rs 15 billion in the escrow account opened for the purpose.

After the deal fell through over absence of regulatory clearances on June 21, Sahara moved a court in Lucknow seeking to bar Jet from operating the escrow account.

In all, four petitions (two by Sahara Group and as many by Jet) are pending in connection with the matter.

The Supreme Court had on August 28 ordered transfer of all petitions filed by Sahara group in a Lucknow court to the Bombay High Court.

The apex court, however, ruled that the interim injunction granted by the Lucknow district court restraining Jet from withdrawing money from the escrow account would continue till further orders were passed by the High Court.