The Company Law Board (CLB) on Thursday heard arguments on behalf of Vikram Bakshi who sought his reinstatement as the managing director of Connaught Plaza Restaurants, a JV company that operates McDonald’s restaurants in north and east India.
Bakshi, a 50% stake holder in CPRL, had moved the CLB on Monday accusing Hardcastle Restaurants, which runs the operations in the western and southern part of the country, of influencing the US fast food chain ?to take oppressive steps? against him. The operations of Hardcastle Restaurants are run by BL Jatia, under a development licence by McDonald’s.
McDonald?s had on August 30 issued a public notice declaring that Bakshi had ceased to operate as the managing director of CPRL from July 17.
The ousted MD also sought an order from CLB directing the nominee directors of McDonald’s ? Robert Larson and Ayesel Melbye ? to refrain from altering the composition of the board of CPRL or its management structure.
Appearing on behalf of Bakshi, senior counsel SN Mukherjee argued that the management and adminisitration of CPRL should be given back to Bakshi as ?he has been at the helm of the company for the last 18 years and is aware about the business affairs of the company?. He also said that two nominee directors of McDonald’s are not local directors, who are wrongfully seeking to create a ?vacuum? in the managerial position of the company.
In his arguments before the CLB, Mukherjee argued that ?even in 2011, in a meeting, the other joint venture partner for west and south India region expressed his desire to buy out the petitioner’s (Bakshi’s) shares and categorically informed him that McDonald’s had given him a tacit approval for the same…”