Company Law Board returns Telenor, Unitech petitions

MUMBAI: The Company Law Board (CLB) returned Telenor and Unitech's petitions on their disagreement in joint venture-Uninor-citing technical errors in the petitions. The CLB has asked the partners to try and work out the matter themselves rather than litigate.

Telenor has sent an indemnity notice to Unitech as it began the process to disassociate itself from the Indian partner after the Supreme Court annulled all its licenses last month. The companies are to appear again before CLB on March 13.

On February 24, Norway-based Telenor and its Indian partner Unitech had moved petitions before the CLB to remove or restrain each other's representatives from Uninor.

Telenor had requested for the 'exclusion' and 'removal' of Unitech's managing director Sanjay Chandra and two other nominees from the company management and administrative affairs. Whereas, Unitech sought to maintain status quo at Uninor, and had requested to bar any transfer of its assets to other company without its consent. Telenor holds over 67% stake in the JV.

The two partners have been fighting since 2010, when getting loans became difficult to companies embroiled in the 2G Scam. In November 2010, the former telecom minister A Raja was sacked on grounds of favorably awarding telecom licenses at low prices.

Telenor is now in search of another Indian partner; a deal it hopes to clinch before the upcoming auction of airwaves.