NCLT dismisses Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Ventures’ plea to stop Hinduja Group from using ‘Reliance’ brand

The Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) dismissed an application filed by Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Ventures Pvt Ltd (ADAVL) seeking to stop Hinduja Group from using the ‘Reliance’ brand as part of its acquisition of bankrupt Reliance Capital (RCap).

Detailed order is awaiting.

The dispute stems from a 2014 brand licensing agreement that gave Reliance Capital a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use the “Reliance” name for 10 years. Although ADAVL terminated the agreement in June 2021, the NCLT’s February 27 order allowed the Hinduja group’s bidding entity IndusInd International Holdings Ltd (IIHL) to use the brand for three years as part of the approved resolution plan.

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ADAVL is currently seeking a recall of that part of the order, arguing that the approval does not give IIHL the right to continue using the brand.

ADAVL maintains that the ‘Reliance’ brand is not an asset under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) and that it was not consulted on the decision to expand the use of the IIHL brand during the resolution process. However, in August, IIHL clarified that it planned to rename Reliance Capital as ‘IndusInd’ upon completion of the acquisition to address some of ADAVL’s concerns.

The administrator’s lawyer, Rohan Kadam, said the parties had agreed on terms of the license to facilitate the resolution process and allow for renewal by mutual consent. He stressed that ADAVL had not suffered any legal harm.

Although NCLT approved $The resolution in February was 96.81 billion rupees, but the acquisition has not yet been implemented. IIHL and RCap’s lenders remain divided over implementation issues.

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At a recent hearing, IHL informed the tribunal that it had $2,750 crore was deposited in an escrow account with creditors and NCLT has directed regulators, including the Reserve Bank of India, to expedite necessary approvals.

Under the existing agreement, the approved resolution plan grants IIHL the right to use the Reliance Capital brand and logo on an interim basis for a period of three years to facilitate the company’s turnaround. However, delays in implementation have left tensions between the parties unresolved.