NEW DELHI: After resisting for months, Jet Airways founder and chairman Naresh Goyal on Monday yielded to pressure and stepped down from the airline’s board. Goyal’s wife Anita, who jointly held majority stake in the airline, and Etihad Airways’ nominee director Kevin Knight also quit. The other nominee director of Etihad, Robin Kamark, will continue. So will the two nominees of the promoter.
“For the sake of my family of 22,000 employees and their respective families, I have today taken the step of stepping down from the Board of Jet Airways,” said Goyal.
The banks will now pump in Rs1,500 crore — against security of the airline’s assets — into the cash-strapped airline, which has been struggling to pay even salaries to staff. The development saw lenders led by SBI suddenly in the cockpit. According to a company statement, the lenders will form an interim management to monitor daily cash flow and operations.
Goyal’s equity has been brought down to 25 per cent and partner Etihad’s holding reduced to half at 12 per cent. Lenders will have 51 per cent ownership with fresh issuance of 11.4 crore equity shares.
While the threat of the debt-laden company with 22,000 employees being referred to NCLT has been averted for now, the lenders have their hands full. They will float expression of interest for bids by April 9. The deadline will be April 30.
Rajnish Kumar, chairman of SBI, said investors would be found by the end of May.
Kumar clarified that anybody with a solid funding and revival plan can come forward. Naresh Goyal or Etihad can also bid for the stake, he added.
Jet, reeling under a debt of over `8,000 crore, had defaulted on its dues to the banks, delayed salaries of its staff, and has been the most noteworthy disruptor in leading the airfare hike and cancellation of flights as it grounded nearly 90 aircraft out of its fleet of 120 planes.