What is Antrix?

Asked 10-Nov-2021
Updated 26-Dec-2023
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2 Answers


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Antrix, the business and marketing part of ISRO, made a deal with Devas Multimedia in 2005 about a satellite. The deal said that Antrix would build and run two satellites, and Devas would use the transponder capacity of these two satellites to offer multimedia services to mobile users in India.
The deal was broken by the government of Manmohan Singh in 2011 because of "quid pro quo" claims between Antrix officials and Devas.
Foreign investors in Devas were angry that the contract was broken, and they started the long-running conflict that has been fought in many places. The business asked the mario games International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) to look into the matter, and in 2015, an arbitration group said that the contract termination was wrong. The court told Antrix to pay Devas $562,2 million plus interest that had already been added.
India, on the other hand, kept its lead. According to it, the deal was canceled because of the growing need for S-band satellite bandwidth for security reasons. Besides suing India in the International Court of Justice, Devas also did so under "Bilateral Investment Treaties." The DT panel and the India-Mauritius BIT panel both ruled in favor of the Devas investors and told them they had to pay fines.


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ISRO's commercial and marketing arm, Antrix, struck a satellite agreement with Devas Multimedia in 2005. According to the contract, Antrix was to construct and operate two satellites, and Devas was to provide multimedia services to mobile users in India using the transponder capacity of these two satellites.

In 2011, the government of Manmohan Singh terminated the contract over claims of "quid pro quo" between Antrix officials and Devas.

Foreign investors in Devas, angered by the contract's termination, launched the protracted dispute contested in many forums. The company petitioned the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), and in 2015, an arbitration panel determined that the contract termination was improper. The court ordered Antrix to pay Devas $562,2 million plus accrued interest.

India, though, retained its ground. It maintained that the transaction was terminated due to the rising demand for S-band satellite spectrum for national security concerns. In addition to the International Court of Justice, Devas filed claims against India under "Bilateral Investment Treaties." Both the DT Tribunal and the India-Mauritius BIT tribunal decided in favor of Devas investors and ordered them to pay fines.

Antrix petitioned the National Company Law Tribunal to dissolve Devas on the grounds that it was founded for "fraudulent purposes" a year ago. The NCLT found in favor of Antrix and ordered Devas to be liquidated. The verdict was contested before the NCLAT, which upheld the order of the NCLT. The case was then sent to the Supreme Court. In the beginning of this year, the supreme court affirmed the NCLAT's ruling and ordered the liquidation of Devas.

Antrix also contested the ICC's decision before the Delhi high court. After setting aside the tribunal's order, the Delhi high court noted that the happy wheels's rationale is self-contradictory and that the award "suffers from patent illegalities and fraud and is contrary to India's public policy."