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A consortium of lenders of <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=SBI&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">State Bank of India </a>moved <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=supreme+court&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Supreme Court</a>, pleading to be part of proceedings of <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=aircel&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Aircel</a> case. The group has said it will be severely affected if the Apex Court barred Aircel from trading in<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=2G+airwaves&amp;sortorder=effectivedate"> 2G airwaves</a>. 
 
The group said this order will impact repayment to creditors, adding it was vitally interested, as the Chennai-based carrier owed the bank and others a total of Rs 20,000 crore as of December 2016. 
 
"In the event this court passes an order directing that Aircel be restrained from earning any revenue, by using 2G spectrum licences which were granted to them in November 2006, the same would severely affect all lenders as it would result in non-payment of dues owed to lenders,” the plea, filed by SBI and 11 other banks, stated. 
 
The banks added there is no occasion for any benefit being passed on to (majority Malaysian stakeholder) Maxis or any persons as all amounts are to be deposited with SBI for benefit of lenders. 
 
“No payments by way of dividends, profits or otherwise can be made to any of the shareholders of Aircel or Maxis unless all debt servicing obligations are met,” the plea added. 
 
The lenders said Aircel’s shares are secured with them that cannot be transferred or sold by shareholders without their permission. 
 
Dues owed to local banks including SBI is Rs 12,627 crore, foreign currency debt is Rs 595 crore and that from bank guarantees and letters of credit stands at Rs 3,232 crore. Maxis Communications Berhad, which owns 74% of Aircel, has since December 2005 invested Rs 33,000 crore in the unit through equity contributions, redeemable preference shares and shareholder loans. 
 
Earlier this month, the court said it would revoke Aircel's licence if promoter T Ananda Krishnan and former executive Ralph Marshall, who ran Maxis, the parent company of Aircel at the time of the acquisition, didn't appear in an ongoing case of corruption in a lower court. 
 
The court barred the transfer or sale of Aircel's 2G airwaves to a third party in the interim. The top court had also asked the telecom department to look for an alternative service provider for Aircel's 91 million subscribers, and it could even consider auctioning the spectrum.

Banks want to be present in proceedings as Supreme Court bars Aircel from trading in 2G

New Delhi, Feb 14 () The Enforcement Directorate and the CBI filed a status report of their investigation into Aircel-Maxis cases before a Delhi court on Friday. The ED told District Judge Sujata Kohli that active investigation into the matter was going on, while the Central Bureau of Investigation informed her that letters rogatory had been sent to Malaysia and the status was awaited. Judicial requests, also known as letters rogatory, are issued by courts on the request of an investigation agency when it wants information from another country. The probe agencies are investigating how Karti Chidambaram, son of Congress leader P Chidambaram, received clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) for the Aircel-Maxis deal in 2006 when his father was the Union finance minister. The CBI and the ED had alleged that P Chidambaram, as finance minister during the United Progressive Alliance regime, granted approval to the deal beyond his capacity benefitting certain persons, and received kickbacks. URD LLP PKSHMB

Aircel-Maxis cases: ED, CBI file status report of investigation

<ul><li>The non-executive chairman of <keyword id="45660" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Yes-Bank">Yes Bank</keyword>, <keyword id="46928" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ashok-Chawla">Ashok Chawla</keyword>, submitted his resignation on 14 November. </li><li>The move is a significant blow for Yes Bank, which was counting on Chawla to steady the ship ahead of the departure of CEO <keyword id="128581" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rana-Kapoor">Rana Kapoor</keyword>, whose tenure will not be extended past January 2019 following an order from the <keyword id="30067" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="RBI">RBI</keyword>. </li><li>In July 2018, Chawla, who is a former secretary of the finance ministry, was named in a chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation in relation to the Aircel-Maxis case. </li></ul> Yes Bank, one of India’s largest private sector banks, hasn’t had an easy go as of late. Just a few months after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) refused to extend the tenure of its CEO and founder Rana Kapoor, precipitating <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/one-of-indias-largest-private-banks-has-lost-more-than-half-its-market-value-in-37-days/articleshow/65991141.cms">a crash in its market value</a>, its non-executive chairman, Ashok Chawla, has resigned. On Wednesday, the bank <a href="https://www.yesbank.in/media/press-releases/yes-bank-announces-resignation-of-chairman-shri-ashok-chawla-from-board-of-directors">confirmed </a>the news of Chawla’s resignation, explaining that it needed a chairman that could devote more attention to the bank as it navigated the management transition period. The move is a significant blow for Yes Bank, which was counting on Chawla to <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Industry/ibwVz9TXbViawOxiyv6nhJ/Yes-Bank-chairman-Ashok-Chawla-looks-to-restore-investor-con.html">steady the ship</a> ahead of Kapoor’s departure. In September, RBI had refused to extend Kapoor’s tenure owing to lapses in governance at Yes Bank which led to under-reporting of non-performing loans under the RBI’s regulatory requirements that mandate all banks recognise and make provisions for bad loans in their balance sheets. Separately, Chawla, who is also the chairman of the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) and a former joint secretary in the Ministry of Finance, is currently a person of interest in a <keyword id="46183" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Corruption">corruption</keyword> investigation. In July 2018, he was <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Companies/ADf3iTFpj1u3EAKd1pKvFM/Aircel-Maxis-case-Yes-Bank-wants-RBI-to-decide-on-Ashok-Cha.html">named </a>in a chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation in relation to the Aircel-Maxis case. That case is centred on the 2006 acquisition of a 74% stake in Indian mobile network operator Aircel, which was owned by C Sivasankaran, by Malaysian telecom firm Maxis, which is owned by T Ananda Krishnan. In 2011, Sivasankaran said he was forced into selling the stake in Aircel by India’s telecom minister, Dayanidhi Maran. It was subsequently found that a firm owned by Maran’s brother received a hefty payment from Maxis for facilitating the deal. Former Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti <a href="https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/chidambaram-charged-in-aircel-maxis-case-is-accused-no-1-1375213-2018-10-25">have also been charged</a> with money laundering in the case. The RBI has sought to take a sterner approach towards corporate governance in recent times. In October, the CEO of ICICI Bank, Chanda Kochhar, was forced <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/its-the-end-of-the-road-for-chanda-kochhar/articleshow/66082441.cms">to step down </a>amid a conflict-of-interest scandal. Yes Bank now has to scramble to find a new CEO and chairman. At the end of October, it had shortlisted <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Companies/oglYV7TdL2hm16ukNOsRlI/Yes-Bank-ready-with-first-list-of-names-in-Rana-successor-hu.html">more than 12 candidates</a> to succeed Kapoor, who term as CEO ends on 31 January next year. A final list is expected by the end of November. Meanwhile, owing to Chawla’s alleged involvement in the Aircel-Maxis case, the Securities and Exchange Board of India is reportedly in the process of deciding on whether or not he should continue as <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Companies/7BGhuMZHIvP8oyL4CZWjqI/Aircel-Maxis-case-NSEs-Ashok-Chawla-now-under-Sebi-probe.html">the chairman of the NSE</a>. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/one-of-indias-largest-private-banks-has-lost-more-than-half-its-market-value-in-37-days/articleshow/65991141.cms">One of India’s largest private banks has lost more than half its market value in 37 days</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/its-the-end-of-the-road-for-chanda-kochhar/articleshow/66082441.cms">It's the end of the road for Chanda Kochhar</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/here-are-the-main-findings-from-punjab-national-banks-internal-investigation-into-the-2-billion-nirav-modi-scam/articleshow/64681851.cms">Here are the main findings from Punjab National Bank’s internal investigation into the $2 billion Nirav Modi scam</a>

Yes Bank’s problems get further compounded as its chairman is forced to resign amid a corruption probe

The <keyword id="12163" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ed">ED</keyword> chief today batted for allowing the agency to independently register and pursue anti-money laundering cases so that its probe is not impacted even if the courts junk the first FIR by any other agency, according to PTI.The ED is in a "three-legged race" and many courts feel that if the case of the scheduled agency is thrown out, "then the ED case automatically fails", Enforcement Directorate chief Karnal Singh said and added this should change as the rules of the game are "different" under the PMLA.His remarks comes in the backdrop of the courts recently discharging the Maran brothers (<keyword id="671656" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Aircel-Maxis">Aircel-Maxis</keyword> 2G spectrum case) and arms dealer <keyword id="344203" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Abhishek-Verma">Abhishek Verma</keyword> in separate <keyword id="6354572" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="CBI">CBI</keyword> cases, based on which the ED had registered criminal cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).The ED can, at present, file a case only on the basis of an FIR by agencies like CBI and cannot take up an anti-money laundering investigation independently.The court had held that as the scheduled offence registered by CBI in Aircel-Maxis case is no more valid, the ED case too becomes "groundless" and that nothing survived in it. The ED has appealed against the order.Calling such developments as "bottle necks" in its effort to curb the menace of black money and corruption, Singh said that the "undertsanding of law sometimes creates problems."He was delivering the inaugural speech at the Enforcement Day event, where <keyword id="25455" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="finance">Finance</keyword> Minister Arun Jaitley was the chief guest along with Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia."Our legs are tied with the scheduled agency (CBI in these cases). It is like in sports where we have the three- legged race...our one leg is tied with them (scheduled agency like police or CBI) and many courts feel that the other case fails then the ED case automatically fails."We have gone (in appeal) to the Supreme Court in such a case for a decision," the ED Director said.The rules of game are different in predicate offence investigation and the ED investigation, he said.The ED, sources said, wants legal amendments in the PMLA so that it can register criminal cases on its own rather than forming basis of any other agency's FIR.The ED chief listed some points that differentiate PMLA from other laws."Whenever there is investigation by police, the statement given before police is not admissible in court while statement given before a directorate (ED) officer is admissible in court. Appreciation of evidence is also different. These issues have to be resolved with the passage of time," Singh said.Talking about ED's achievements, the Director said the agency has attached, under PMLA, assets worth over Rs 22,000 crore till now, and half of it has been done in last year alone.A good number of attachments under anti-money laundering laws came as a result of the ED's probe in black money cases which were registered post demonetisation.Prime Minister <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword> had declared demonetisation of two high value currencies of Rs 1000 and Rs 500 denomination on November 8 last year."The last financial year was full of challenges for ED be it the case of <keyword id="14678" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Vijay-Mallya">Vijay Mallya</keyword>, AgustaWestland, bank fraud cases, the demonetisation issues...officers of the agency performed to their best with their diligence and hardwork," he said.He said the agency filed 76 charge sheets under PMLA last year, while it filed 104 such complaints in the courts this year."The total cases under trial are 353," he said adding first two convictions under PMLA were obtained this year.Singh said cases related to bank frauds, corruption and those related to shell companies are a priority for the agency."Analysis of cases being investigated by ED shows that 27 per cent of total cases are bank frauds or other frauds...and it is the area of concern. The second area of concern, about 20 per cent of the cases, are related to corruption."If we see how money is laundered then the most important laundering process is by the shell companies which we can say is done by accommodation entry operators," he said.He also drew an analogy between money laundering and washing clothes at a 'dhobi ghaat'."It (money laundering) is like suppose you have to wash your clothes...'dhobi ghaat' only washes them but who uses the clothes? Somebody else."If any country is prone to money laundering it becomes like a 'dhobhi ghat'," he said."The people of various countries would come, clean their money and go back and take their money back and we are never benefited out of that," Singh said.He also urged professionals like Chartered Accountants and others to "desist from doing wrong things"."We did some searches (against CAs and other professionals)...we arrested one CA. They should have a clear message that they should work for the country and not for the offenders," the Director said.The ED chief added there are certain other "bottle necks" being faced by it like misunderstanding of legal procedures (by its officials), implementation of law and shortage of manpower.The agency, he said, is in the process of establishing five more cyber labs in addition to the one it has at its headquarters here, so that digital evidence is quickly retrieved and used for investigation purposes. "Our endeavour is to improve professionalism in the ED and I can assure that we will work with utmost sincerity, integrity and professionalism to give results to the country," he said.

ED wants independence in registering anti-money laundering cases

<ul><li>The 14 year old battle on defining ADR will cost Airtel and Vodafone-Idea over ₹50,000 crore in penalties and interests.</li><li>The order also technically affects 13 other telecom companies which have ceased to exist.</li><li>While a few filed for bankruptcy, others have simply shut down operations. </li></ul>It is not just Bharti Airtel and Vodafone-Idea that are affected by the Supreme Court order which went in favour of the telecom department. Ideally, other than these two companies – which were three earlier–there were 13 others who could have been affected by the order, if they did survive. Fortunately for them and unfortunately for DoT – they did not. As much as ₹38,000 crore that the telecom department is owed can never be recovered, according to a report by Spark Capital. “Recovery is unlikely from bankrupt companies given banks are already taking a haircut on such telcos,” Nitin Soni, director of corporate at Fitch Ratings told Business Insider India. One of such is Reliance Communications which is now undergoing bankruptcy proceedings. It is the only telecom company for whom the change in definition of Adjusted Gross Revenue (ADR) is known along with penalties---at over ₹16,000 crores. However, since this order came much after it went into bankruptcy, there is no way could recover it. Aircel has been fighting a losing battle with its own debt and inability to keep up its operations. Just last year, the company became defunct and filed for bankruptcy. But the company was once the market leader in Tamil Nadu and also expanded to 6 other circles. But it was hit by a controversy over its takeover by Malaysian company Maxis Communications and was heavily investigated by the CBI. By 2012, it had started scaling down its operations owing to excessive competition among other hurdles. It had tried to merge itself with many operators including Sistema, Airtel and RCom but those deals never took off. The next in line is BPL Communications which unlike other telecom companies, died a natural death. Its held licence only for the Mumbai circle which expired in 2014. While it did consider re-applying for it and also merging itself with Airtel, that was not to be. It simply stalled operations and allowed its users to port out. DoT is getting nothing from it, as no traces of this company exists now. There are many others which have been protesting against DoT’s move to charge ADR on all the revenues of a telecom company instead of those which centric to telecom operations. Some of them are listed entities like Tata Teleservices Maharashtra, and others like Tata Teleservices which also includes Tata Docomo and Tata Indicom. But these companies have since merged with Airtel and the extent of their liability and ability to pay up is not known.

Airtel and Voda-Idea could pay DoT, but what about ₹38,000 crore from defunct telcos?

<keyword id="45660" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Yes-Bank">Yes Bank</keyword> has finally named a successor for its current <keyword id="115930" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Chief-Executive-Officer">chief executive officer</keyword> (CEO), <keyword id="128581" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rana-Kapoor">Rana Kapoor</keyword>, putting to rest any further uncertainty over the succession process at one of India’s largest private banks. <keyword id="788579" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ravneet-Gill">Ravneet Gill</keyword> - the head of Deutsche Bank’s Indian operations - is set to take over from Kapoor, who also founded the bank in 2004. Kapoor’s tenure is set to end on 31st January following the Reserve Bank of India’s refusal to extend his term. 
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 Gill’s appointment caps a tumultuous period for Yes Bank, following a clampdown by India’s central bank. Gill is expected to step into the role on March 1st for a three-year term. The move was greeted favourably by equity investors, with the bank’s shares <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=yes+bank+share+price&amp;rlz=1C1GCEU_enIN820IN820&amp;oq=yes+bank+share+price&amp;aqs=chrome..69i57j0j69i60l3j0.2433j0j4&amp;sourceid=chrome&amp;ie=UTF-8">surging 16%</a> in the last session of trading on Thursday. Here all the events leading up to the announcement:- October 23rd, 2017 The <keyword id="30067" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="RBI">RBI</keyword> levied <a href="https://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/BS_PressReleaseDisplay.aspx?prid=42050">a ₹60 million fine</a> on Yes Bank after a sector-wide risk review found that the private lender had under-reported a series of non-performing loans in its financial statements for the year ended March 2016. The fine followed a notice issued to the bank the preceding July for its failure to report a cybersecurity attack at its ATM network. According to the RBI, this amounted to a refusal to accept liability for the loss of customers’ information. June 12th, 2018 At an annual shareholders’ meeting, Yes Bank’s shareholders voted to give Rana Kapoor <a href="https://www.bseindia.com/xml-data/corpfiling/CorpAttachment/2018/6/f8d7297d-dbbc-4a80-b910-bd0be88b546f.pdf">another three-year term</a> as the bank’s CEO starting September 1st. Kapoor’s re-appointment did, however, depend upon a greenlight from the central bank. 
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 August 30th, 2018 After deliberating <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/money-and-banking/yes-bank-awaits-rbi-approval-to-reappoint-rana-kapoor-as-ceo/article24803656.ece">for more time than was initially expected</a>, the RBI approved Yes Bank’s decision to have Kapoor continue in his role as Managing Director and CEO a day before his term was set to expire. The approval came with a slightly suspicious caveat: Rana Kapoor was allowed to continue as CEO <a href="https://www.bseindia.com/xml-data/corpfiling/AttachLive/4b4b2947-7e80-4013-878d-6c3330117be5.pdf">‘till further notice</a>’. September 19th, 2018 In a glaring about-turn, the RBI refused to extend Rana Kapoor’s tenure as CEO of Yes Bank, giving him four months (until January 31st, 2019) to vacate the position. The move had precedence. Earlier in the year, the central bank refused to clear a three-year extension of the tenure of Shikha Sharma, the CEO of Axis Bank, as the bank dealt with its own host of bad loan calculation problems. September 20th, 2018 Yes Bank’s share price plummeted by over 29% on the first day of trading since the RBI’s decision was announced - a loss of nearly $3 billion worth of market capitalisation. The price drop exacerbated a freefall in Yes Bank’s share price since August, which culminated in the loss of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/one-of-indias-largest-private-banks-has-lost-more-than-half-its-market-value-in-37-days/articleshow/65991141.cms">half the bank’s market value.</a> September 25th, 2018 The board of directors of Yes Bank met to assess the situation. At <a href="https://www.yesbank.in/media/press-releases/outcome-of-board-meeting-25-sep-2018">the meeting</a>, they decided to request the RBI to reconsider its decision. They wrote to the RBI asking for an extension for Kapoor’s tenure till at least the end of April 2019 to finalise the bank’s year-end financial statements. The board also set up a search committee to find a replacement for Kapoor. October 1st, 2018 CARE Ratings, a credit ratings agency, placed Yes Bank’s debt on <a href="https://www.yesbank.in/media/press-releases/developing-implications-by-care-ratings">‘credit watch with developing implications’</a>, causing further investor jitters. October 17th, 2018 The RBI rejects the request submitted by Yes Bank’s board of directors seeking a minor extension for Kapoor. To allay investor fears, Yes Bank says that it should conclude the CEO search process by mid-December 2018. October 19th, 2018 Rana Kapoor <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Companies/SVfWpr650CG79vvcqXlydL/Yes-Bank-CEO-Rana-Kapoor-meets-rival-promoter-Madhu-Kapur-s.html">met with another Yes Bank promoter Madhu Kapur</a>, the wife of Yes Bank’s co-founder - the now-deceased Ashok Kapur, to discuss a possible formation of a single promoter group, ending a decade-long dispute and paving the way for a smooth succession plan for the bank. October 25th, 2018 Yes Bank posted <a href="https://www.yesbank.in/pdf/q2fy2018_19_press_release_cr_pdf">a 4% drop</a> in net profit for the quarter ended September 2018 owing to higher provisions for loan losses. Gross <keyword id="142154" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="bad-loans">bad loans</keyword> also rose by 37% on a sequential basis, resulting in a bad loan ratio of 1.6% as opposed to 1.3% the previous quarter. To make matters worse, the lender also disclosed a ₹26 billion to the near-bankrupt IL&amp;FS. November 14th, 2018 The bank’s non-executive chairman, Ashok Chawla, <a href="https://www.yesbank.in/media/press-releases/yes-bank-announces-resignation-of-chairman-shri-ashok-chawla-from-board-of-directors">submitted his resignation</a> owing to the fact that he was the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/yes-banks-problems-get-further-compounded-as-its-chairman-is-forced-to-resign-amid-a-corruption-probe/articleshow/66634836.cms">subject of a corruption probe</a>. In July 2018, Chawla, who was also the chairman of the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE), was named in a chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation in relation to the Aircel-Maxis case. In its announcement, Yes Bank said that it needed a chairman that could devote more attention to the bank as it navigated the management transition period. November 27th, 2018 Following a number of resignations from Yes Bank’s board, Moody’s Investors Service <a href="https://www.moodys.com/research/Moodys-downgrades-Yes-Banks-ratings-changes-outlook-to-negative--PR_392036">downgraded </a>Yes Bank’s credit rating to non-investment grade and changed the bank’s outlook to negative from stable. November 29th, 2018 News reports emerged that Rana Kapoor was seeking to maintain control of Yes Bank by <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Companies/FAMv2Atixphj1fprI0DYpI/Rana-Kapoor-eyes-Yes-Bank-chairman-seat-after-exit-as-CEO.html">taking over the chairmanship</a> of the company. The move, however, never came to fruition. December 3rd, 2018 T S Vijayan, was appointed to Yes Bank’s board as an independent director for five years. The move was expected, given that former chief of LIC and the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDAI) was also on the CEO search and selection committee. January 10th, 2019 The board of directors of Yes Bank submits a list of potential CEO candidates to the RBI for the latter’s approval. The board highlights Gill as their most preferred candidate to take over the role. January 12th, 2019 Yes Bank named Brahm Dutt as its new non-executive chairman on a part time basis. A board member since 2013, Dutt’s tenure is capped till July 2020, when he is scheduled to turn 70 years old. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/yes-banks-problems-get-further-compounded-as-its-chairman-is-forced-to-resign-amid-a-corruption-probe/articleshow/66634836.cms">Yes Bank’s problems get further compounded as its chairman is forced to resign amid a corruption probe</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/one-of-indias-largest-private-banks-has-lost-more-than-half-its-market-value-in-37-days/articleshow/65991141.cms">One of India’s largest private banks has lost more than half its market value in 37 day</a>s

Yes Bank's 15-month journey from regulatory crackdown to finding a new CEO

<ul><li>The former Finance Minister of India succumbed to sustained illness today (August 24).</li><li>For a politician who never won an election, Jaitley remained largely relevant and influential throughout his career spanning decades.</li><li>Jaitley famously backed Narendra Modi in his early days and even when the party's leadership denounced the latter, he stoody by Modi.</li><li>In a world where friendships are forged with secrets and power, Jaitley was everyone’s confidante, philosopher, and guide. </li></ul>India’s former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley passed away after sustained illness at the age of 66 after an impressive political career spanning decades when he never won an election but was always relevant and maintained his deep influence in Indian politics. Jaitley, along with the former Foreign Minister, the late Sushma Swaraj -- <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/sushma-swaraj-indias-former-foreign-minister-passes-away-at-the-age-of-67/articleshow/70561044.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">who passed away earlier this month</a>-- were instrumental in keeping the Bharatiya Janata Party relevant, as an opposition party, in the ten years preceding 2014 when Narendra Modi swept to power as India's Prime Minister. Modi himself owes a lot to Jaitley for his rise to political prominence in India. Not just Modi, even the BJP's harshest critics found it way easier to deal or negotiate with Jaitley. A very apt example of Jaitley's realpolitik, his ability in the <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Politics/1JEYCQDdw88BvxjCIHATxK/Reforms-are-the-art-of-the-possible-Arun-Jaitley.html" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">'art of the possible'</a>, is the rollout of the complicated Goods and Services Tax (GST) in 2017, through the GST Council-- which Jaitley led until May 2019-- where Jaitley had to convince state governments with conflicting interests to find a common ground. It is not possible to be a successful politician or a lawyer without making a few enemies. But the smooth-talking Arun Jaitley, who studied at St Xavier's and Shri Ram College of Commerce, wore both these hats causing little or no animosity around him. Paradoxically, Jaitley was also sharp-tongued and temperamental by nature but he dictated his mood and not the other way around. When the Supreme Court struck down an Act which intended to break the age-old collegium system of appointing higher judiciary, Jaitley was quick to call it the “tyranny of the unelected”, something he knew it will be thrown back at him for his electoral failures. Jaitley remained an nominated member of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of Indian Parliament, from 2000 to 2018 as he never won an election. The Former Chief Justice of India, RM Lodha, did taunt him in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tD2GNu556aA" data-type="tilCustomLink">a televised national debate in 2015</a>. But Jaitley was prepared and he knew how to direct the debate in the direction he wanted. That was his skill, the ability to know the strengths and weaknesses, not just of himself but of his rivals too, like few else can. Watch the riveting debate between Arun Jaitley and Former Chief Justice of India RM Lodha over the National Judicial Appointments Commission in 2015. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 <div type="Youtube" id="tD2GNu556aA" title="NJAC Debate with Arnab Goswami | Legislature Vs Judiciary | Arun Jaitley Vs Justice R M Lodha - Full" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/tD2GNu556aA/mqdefault.jpg"></div>













































 Jaitley could see the future and he placed his bets, and made friends, accordingly right from the days as a student politician, to when he became a lawyer and later, the member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Jaitley was Vajpayee’s man who stood by Modi Years before Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister and was barely a politician of any significance, Jaitley became his friend. Modi was living out his exile from Gujarat politics in 1995 at the BJP party headquarters in Delhi, when he met Jaitley--who was then called ‘Vajpayee’s man’. Jaitley had lobbied for <a href="https://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/ties-that-bind/291379">Modi and turned </a>instrumental in making him the chief minister and later the country's Prime Minister. And his ability to network was so slick that even when he chose sides, he made no foes. For one, he chose Modi over LK Advani as the Prime Ministerial candidate in 2013, and yet remained close to the latter. Years later, everyone came to know Jaitley as Modi’s man. The current Prime Minister had so much confidence in Jaitley that during the first five years of the Modi government, Arun Jaitley held the portfolios of Finance, Corporate Affairs, Defence, and Information and Broadcasting-- and at times he was in multiple important portfolios simultaneously. A <a href="https://caravanmagazine.in/sports/rajat-sharma-the-ddca-and-the-perks-of-a-close-friendship-with-arun-jaitley" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">similar friendship forged with Rajat Sharma</a>, the founding editor of India TV, one of India's most influential television channels, lasted Jaitley's lifetime. Sharma reportedly used to drive Jaitley around the Delhi University on his scooter while the latter was campaigning as a student politician in the 1970s. Jaitley represented both Coke and Pepsi as a lawyer against each other at different times He could have even written the famous book ‘How to make friends and influence enemies?’ if Dale Carnegie wouldn’t have beaten him to it. Jaitley had represented two of the world’s most bitter rivals—<a href="https://www.sify.com/news/how-everybody-loves-arun-jaitley-news-columns-pmwpk3ebbdfjd.html" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">Coca Cola and Pepsi as a lawyer</a>. He was Coca Cola’s lawyer for a case against Pepsi and vice versa. Though many would have rolled their eyes at this feat, for him it was a small game. Jaitley's frienship with rivals Sonia Gandhi and P Chidambaram In the <a href="https://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/ties-that-bind/291379" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">long list of unlikely friends</a> is Sonia Gandhi, the head of the rival Congress party, and former Finance Minister, and a lawyer turned politician just like him, P Chidambaram. Jaitley seemed to have gotten through his life keeping all his friends along with a successful career. But many of his friendships were tested, in court as well as Parliament. In 2012, Jaitley was a part of the Opposition party, and he was chosen to question and grill P Chidambaram, the home minister of the ruling Congress party about <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/about/what-is-aircel-maxis-case" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">the Aircel-Maxis deal</a>. Chidambaram started answering the question by saying that <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/article/opinion/aircel-maxis-deal-probe-will-test-friendship-between-chidambaram-and-jaitley-116030300275_1.html">he was happy that </a>“a friend of 22 years has questioned him.” Though later through the session, Chidambaram turned emotional and “felt as if someone plunged a dagger into him.” Their friendship withstood the barbs, the scams, as the Congress politician continued to attend Jaitley’s annual lunch parties which also doubled as his <a href="https://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/ties-that-bind/291379">birthday </a>celebration. Jaitley's rivalry with Subramanian Swamy and Ram Jethmalani Two of Jaitley’s most vicious critics are country’s top lawyers Ram Jethmalani and BJP leader Subramanian Swamy. Both have <a href="https://www.pgurus.com/mr-arun-jaitley-hope-you-have-learnt-your-lesson-for-treating-sonia-family-with-kid-gloves-you-owe-answers-in-mallya-exit/" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">passed vitriolic comments</a> against Jaitley and they both had old beefs to settle. Jaitley was once the legal assistant to Jethmalani. Yet, the camaraderie did not last long. Jaitley is known to <a href="http://www.indialegallive.com/commercial-news/controversy-news/battle-legal-eagles-21529">have influenced Vajpayee </a>to push Jethmalani from his position as the law minister unceremoniously. The fire-breathing lawyer had never forgiven Jaitley nor forgotten the slight, and had used every excuse to criticise him. He also went back to court as Delhi chief minister Arun Kejriwal’s lawyer in a libel case, just for the pleasure of cross-examining his old adversary. But Jaitley was not a man to be easily undone either and kept his cool, passing the bitter examination with flying colours. Jaitley was also not undone even as Swamy questioned his every move. This rivalry too started when he found a legal loophole to deny the payment of his dues over a case he argued. Ever since, <a href="https://theprint.in/politics/subramanian-swamys-rivalry-with-arun-jaitley-goes-back-to-1993-iit-delhi-salary-row/219800/">he accused Jaitley </a>of being a Congress insider, instigator or a coup and much more. When Jaitley did try to clamp him over discipline, Swamy retorted, “People giving me unasked for advice of discipline and restraint don’t realise that if I disregard discipline there would be a bloodbath.” Jaitley wisely never rose to the bait, like a seasoned solider who picks his battles. Jaitley may be no more but the way he deftly maneuvered India's labyrinth political space will provide lessons in the art of the possible. In a world where friendships are forged with secrets and power, Jaitley was everyone’s confidante, philosopher, and guide. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/sushma-swaraj-indias-former-foreign-minister-passes-away-at-the-age-of-67/articleshow/70561044.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">India's 'supermom' Sushma Swaraj, the lady who redefined the country's Foreign Ministry, is no more</a>

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