Industrialist Anil Ambani has withdrawn his petition before the Bombay High Court against a show-cause notice issued by IDBI Bank, after the court made it clear it wasn’t inclined to grant any interim protection.
The matter, heard by Justice Sandesh Patil during the vacation bench, centered on Ambani’s request to pause a personal hearing set for October 30. He argued that the bank had not shared complete documents—particularly the forensic audit and its annexures—on which its fraud allegations were based.
IDBI Bank’s notice traces back to ₹750 crore in loans extended to Reliance Communications Ltd. (RCom), now undergoing insolvency proceedings. The bank alleges that funds were misused and covenants breached, seeking to tag RCom’s account—and related exposures—as “fraud” under the Reserve Bank of India’s Master Directions on Fraud Risk Management.
As RCom’s promoter and guarantor, Ambani was summoned for a personal hearing. When the court declined to pass any ad-interim order halting the process, Ambani opted to withdraw his plea and appear before the bank “under protest.”
The High Court allowed the withdrawal and noted that Ambani could raise all his objections during the bank proceedings, and later approach the appropriate forum if any adverse decision followed. Justice Patil also clarified that the court was not commenting on the substance of the dispute.
This development comes close on the heels of another setback for Ambani earlier this month, when the same court dismissed his challenge to the State Bank of India’s move to label his loan accounts as “fraud,” rejecting claims of procedural unfairness.
