Connaught Plaza Restaurants case: NCLT adjourns Bakshi's plea to Nov 16

New Delhi: The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal on Wednesday adjourned the hearing on the plea filed by McDonald's estranged partner Vikram Bakshi for a fair valuation of his stake at the Indian Joint venture CPRL.

The tribunal also adjourned the hearing on McDonald's plea which has challenged reinstatement of Bakshi as the Managing Director of Connaught Plaza Restaurants Ltd (CPRL) by the NCLT.

An NCLAT bench headed by Justice A I S Cheema adjourned the matter to November 16 for next hearing. The tribunal adjourned the matter considering that the parties have approached the high court with their respective cases.

McDonald's has moved the Delhi high court to enforce the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) award that directed Bakshi to sell his stake in CPRL to McDonald's India Pvt Ltd (MIPL).

During the hearing, the Bakshi's counsel informed the NCLAT bench that they are filing an appeal on Wednesday challenging the same.

Bakshi is at loggerheads with McDonald's since 2013. Later, he had approached the NCLT after McDonald's removed him from the post of MD of CPRL in 2013. In July this year, the tribunal restored him to his position. It was challenged by McDonald's in the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) where the appeal is pending.

Simultaneously, Bakshi also challenged the termination of franchise licence by McDonald's at the NCLAT but was refused any interim relief.

As part of the licence termination, CPRL was asked to stop using McDonalds's name, system, trademark, designs and its associated intellectual property, among others, with effect from September 6. The franchise licence was terminated on August 21.

Except the 43 outlets in the national capital that were shut in June due to non-renewal of eating house licences, the remaining ones continue to operate.