Malaysian firm Maxis gives Rs 95 crore to Aircel to pay salaries: Report

Malaysian parent firm Maxis has given around Rs 95 crore to Aircel to pay its staff their salaries. According to areport in Business Line, the move comes as a surprise as Maxis, which had invested $7 billion with “zero returns” in Aircel, had earlier decided not to make further investments. Aircel had then filed for bankruptcy protection with the National Company Law Tribunal’s Mumbai Bench in February.

Currently, Aircel reportedly has around 4,000 employees. 

The fresh funding will be made through Global Communication Services Holdings (GCSH), Maxis’ Mauritius-based subsidiary, sources close to the development told Business Line. When contacted, GCSH confirmed the development, the newspaper reported

“While GCSH is not obligated to fund Aircel anymore, it has infused ₹95 crore into Aircel on March 31, 2018, to only cover unpaid salaries of Aircel staff for about a month-and-a-half and certain expenses, which is up to the point when the Insolvency Resolution Professional (IRP) was appointed by the NCLT,” said GCSH, in an email reply to the publication. 

Earlier last month, the Supreme Court slammed probe agencies over the delay in completing the investigation into the Aircel-Maxis case in the 2G scam, asking if "invisible hands" were at play.

A bench led by Justice Arun Mishra directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to complete the probe within six months, observing that "you cannot keep the people of the country in the dark".

"Issue is serious for this country. People want to know why investigation not been completed... We are worried about this case, we are very unhappy," the bench said.

"We direct the competent investigating agencies to complete the investigation within six months in all the cases and aspects concerned with 2G spectrum case. No stone shall be left unturned," the bench added.

Attorney General KK Venugopal submitted that he would file a status report that would "throw light" on this matter after the top Court directed him to appear as an amicus, an impartial adviser.

The Aircel-Maxis case refers to a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) approval in 2006 by the then Union finance minister P Chidambaram. According to the CBI, Chidambaram cleared the deal bypassing the Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs.