ITC moves NCLT against Hotel Leelaventure over Brookfield deal, alleges 'oppression and mismanagement'

Diversified group ITC has moved the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) against Hotel Leelaventure alleging “oppression and mismanagement”. ITC’s current plea was mentioned before the Mumbai bench of the NCLT, which has posted the matter for hearing on Wednesday, Hotel Leelaventure said in a regulatory filing. ITC, along with the petition, has also filed two applications seeking a waiver of the requirement of a minimum threshold of 10 percent shareholding, it added. As per the latest information available on bourses, ITC holds 7.92 percent stake in Hotel Leelaventure. However, the Kolkata-headquartered group did not share the reason for which it has moved NCLT against Hotel Leelaventures. [caption id=“attachment_63793” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Flickr[/caption] When contacted, a company spokesperson said: “The matter is sub-judice and therefore we would not like to comment (on it).” On 18 March, Hotel Leelaventure had announced the sale of its four hotels located in Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi and Udaipur, and a property to Canadian investment fund Brookfield for Rs 3,950 crore. According to The Economic Times, ITC has claimed that the deal between Leela and Brookfield is against the interests of the company and its shareholders. The promoters who own the Leela brand would be transferring the brand to Brookfield for all hospitality businesses, Hotel Leelaventure had said in a BSE filing. “After completion of the aforesaid transaction, all borrowings of the company from all banks and financial institutions would stand repaid,” it added. HPost-sale, the company would continue to operate the hotel in Mumbai and own certain land in Hyderabad and the joint development project of residential apartments with Prestige Developers in Bangalore, the filing said. Shares of Hotel Leelaventure Ltd were trading at Rs 10.46 on the BSE during afternoon trade, down 0.38 percent from the previous close. --With PTI inputs