US district court lets Devas track down Indian space agency’s commercial arm Antrix's assets

Devas Multimedia’s shareholders have been allowed to track down assets of the Indian space agency’s commercial arm, Antrix, and to enforce a $1.3 billion award that the beleaguered satellite maker had won via arbitration in 2015.

The US District Court for the Western District of Washington ordered Antrix to furnish information, including documents showing any transfer of assets, money and business contracts from Antrix to NewSpace India — the recently set up commercial space arm of the Department of Space — to Devas’ shareholders and the court by September 17.

Judge Thomas S Zilly ruled that the shareholders of Devas — which include Devas Multimedia America, Devas Employees Mauritius, Telcom Devas Mauritius and Devas (Mauritius) — have a legal right to enforce the arbitral award. “...the court concludes that authorising intervenors to seek post judgment discovery to enforce execution of the Judgment on behalf of petitioner is a reasonable response to the problems and needs confronting the court’s fair administration of justice,” according to the order. ET has reviewed a copy of the order.


Discovery is a formal procedure that parties to a lawsuit use to obtain information before a trial. The Judge, however, granted as well as denied in part Devas shareholders’ motion seeking the court’s assistance in turning over the discovery required to enforce the award. In doing so, he agreed with Antrix’s arguments that some of the requests were “overbroad, unduly burdensome, and not reasonably calculated to reveal executable assets.”

Devas’ shareholders had sought information regarding communications and transfer of assets between Antrix, NewSpace India, the Indian government and the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) starting from July 2011. The court, however, limited the date range for requests to on or after September 14, 2015, and also struck down some requests. “We welcome the court’s careful and well-reasoned ruling. Antrix and India have attempted to subvert the district court’s judgment, but this ruling ensures that it will be enforced,” said Matthew D McGill of law firm Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP, who is the lead counsel for Devas Multimedia America and other shareholders of Devas. According to the order on Monday, the court also granted and denied in part Antrix’s motion for a protective order.

Antrix did not respond to ET’s emails till press time on Wednesday. A senior executive of NewSpace India declined to comment, citing lack of knowledge about the issue. “This case just shows that even if you get an arbitral award in your favour against a state entity (Antrix)… in today’s climate there’s no surety of a conclusion in the sense of recovery of your claims,” said Faisal Sherwani, Partner at L&L Partners. It also indicates the extent to which a state entity is willing to go — by erecting roadblocks to bring Devas to the negotiating table and settle at a substantial discount, Sherwani added. “That appears to me to be the supposed or only tangible goal, if it can be called so, that Antrix seeks to achieve in all of this,” he said.