Sahara Gets Relief From Supreme Court of the State of New York: Court Rejects Bid to Attach its Foreign Properties

Sahara India Pariwar, owner of the Plaza Hotel, the Dream Downtown Hotel at New York and Grosvenor House Hotel, at London, while getting validation to its claim from Supreme Court of the State of New York, gets a relief in a lawsuit filed by Hong Kong based JTS Trading against Sahara and Trinity White City Ventures Limited in June, claiming that it had a deal under a joint venture with Trinity for a deal of the hotels and that it was abruptly excluded when Trinity decided to partner with Sahara. Sahara had claimed that it is being unfairly dragged into a private dispute between JTS and Trinity, as it was a non-party to the dispute. Sahara therefore claimed that JTS had no rights to attach the interests of Sahara’s subsidiary non-party entities (Sahara Plaza LLC and Sahara Dreams LLC) which were accepted by the Supreme Court.

JTS Trading was apparently in a potential joint venture with Trinity White City Ventures Ltd., in a potential bid by Trinity to refinance Sahara’s two hotels in New York and one in London. Sahara was at one time in discussions with Trinity for a refinancing deal, but had no knowledge of the dealings between Trinity and JTS. JTS has alleged breach of the prior joint venture and hence said that damages should be paid.

The broker, JTS, sought USD 350 million as damages and attachment of Sahara’s two prized overseas properties – the Plaza Hotel, the Dream Downtown Hotel at New York.However, the Supreme Court in its order, remarked, “JTS fails to establish entitlement to attach the assets of the non-parties.” Further, the Supreme Court of the State of New York, while accepting Sahara’s contentions, ordered, “Accordingly, JTS’s application for a pre-judgment order of attachment, and all of JTS’s alternate grounds for relief, must be denied.”

While speaking about Sahara’s victory in the said case, the Sahara’s spokesperson said, “We welcome the Hon’ble Supreme Court’s decision which understood our claims in the pious light of justice and protected us from becoming a victim of unscrupulous litigation which aimed at falsely and unfairly dragging us into a private dispute between two parties who have had a falling out.”