Dish TV Ltd.’s promoter entity World Crest Advisors LLP moved the division bench of the Bombay High Court on Monday against a single-judge order that had refused to grant it interim relief, two lawyers involved in the matter told BQ Prime.
Last week, Justice AK Menon declined World Crest’s plea to stop Yes Bank Ltd. from voting on resolutions proposed by Dish TV in its extraordinary general meeting.
E-voting started on Monday and ends on June 23. The EGM is scheduled for June 24.
Yes Bank has already voted on the resolutions, its lawyers told the high court bench of Justices Gautam Patel and Madhav Jamdar during the hearing on Monday. Three resolutions have been proposed in this EGM:
Reappointment of Jawahar Goel as managing director from April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2025
Reappointment of Anil Dua as a whole-time director from March 26, 2022 to March 25, 2025.
Appointment of Rajagopal Venkateish as a non-executive independent director.
World Crest had argued before the single bench that its application for interim relief has been prompted by certain changed circumstances. Pointing to the Supreme Court’s decision in PTC Financial’s case in May, World Crest said Yes Bank had no right to vote. The bank is an illegal transferee of the shares and Catalyst has illegally parted with the security, it argued.
World Crest has been locked in a dispute with Yes Bank since last year. It’s seeking a declaration that it is the owner of 44,00,54,852 equity shares of Dish TV, which are currently held by Yes Bank in its demat account.
Yes Bank had acquired Dish TV’s shares after invocation of pledge subsequent to default/breach of terms of loan by the company. The bank holds 25.63% stake in the company.
The bank argued that World Crest’s petition was an attempt to stall its participation in the meeting. And that as per the deed of pledge, as a nominee of Catalyst, Yes Bank is entitled to exercise voting rights.
The single bench declined to grant interim relief to World Crest.
“The applicant has not made out a prima facie case nor is the balance of convenience favouring grant of relief,” the bench had said. No irreparable harm is likely to be caused to World Crest, the high court had noted in its order.
The matter will come up before the division bench on June 22.