India has lost a major case in international arbitration and may have to pay up to a billion dollars in damages for cancelling a deal involving two satellites and the spectrum they were to use.
The ruling could hurt India’s reputation among international investors.
The International Tribunal in The Hague has given the verdict against the government of India in a case filed by Devas Multimedia. The contract was cancelled in 2005 by Antrix, which is the commercial arm of the state-run Indian Space and Research Organisation (ISRO).
Devas had filed its case at the international court of arbitration in 2015. Antrix had agreed to lease long-term two satellites operating in the S-band spectrum but the contract was cancelled in 2011.
The tribunal has noted that in doing so, the government acted unfairly, causing huge losses to investors in Devas Multimedia.