NEW DELHI: British oil and gas exploration firm Cairn Energy Plc (Cairn) has said that, as a part of a recovery of the US $1.7 billion due from the Indian government, it has got a French court order to seize some 20 Indian government properties in Paris.

The order relates to Cairn's in dispute with the Indian government over a 2014 retrospective tax bill when the country's tax office seized a 10% stake in Indian operations that Cairn was trying to sell.

The Indian government has responded by saying that while it was trying to ascertain the facts, and whenever such an order is received, appropriate legal remedies will be taken, in consultation with its counsels, to protect the interests of India.

Cairn took the issue to an international tribunal, which awarded the company US $1.7bn in costs and damages in December 2020. The Indian government has appealed against this.

The order passed by the Judicial Court of Paris (In French: Tribunal judiciaire de Paris) on June 11 allowed Cairn's application to freeze (through judicial mortgages) residential real estate owned by the Government of India in central Paris.

Cairn said that the legal formalities for seizer was completed on Wednesday (7 July) evening and reportedly involves centrally located properties like residential flats, offices and other assets used by Indian government establishments in France that could be seized, including ones owned by Air India.

The company has filed lawsuits in several countries, primarily with high-value Indian assets. Last month, Cairn brought a lawsuit in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York pleading that Air India is controlled by the Indian government so much that they are 'alter egos' and the airline should be held liable for the arbitration award.

In a report on BBC's Today programme, David Nisbet, director for Cairn Energy's group corporate affairs said, "It is a long-running story, unfortunately, and one we wished hadn't actually taken place."

He said that more than six months after the ruling by the international tribunal, despite discussions in Delhi on two occasions, India has not said it will honour it.

"Clearly what we want to do is find an agreed amicable settlement with the government of India," he said, further adding "But this is all just part of a process of saying. 'Look India, we need to earnestly engage', but we also have a fiduciary duty to protect the rights of our shareholders."

Response from the Ministry of Finance said that the Government of India has not received any notice, order or communication, in this regard, from any French Court.

The government has already filed an application on March 22, 2021, to set aside the December 2020 international arbitral award in The Hague Court of Appeal. "Government of India will vigorously defend its case in Set Aside proceedings at The Hague," the response said.

It is also stated that the CEO and the representatives of Cairns' have approached the Government of India for discussions to resolve the matter. Constructive discussions have been held and the Government remains open for an amicable solution to the dispute within the country’s legal framework.