New Delhi, June 14 (Agency) India’s antitrust watchdog Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Tuesday said that it has approved the acquisition of entire shareholding in Air Asia India by Air India. The proposed combination envisages the acquisition of the entire equity share capital of Air Asia (India) Private Limited (Air Asia India) by Air India Ltd (AIL), an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Sons Private Limited (TSPL), an official statement from CCI said.
At present, TSPL holds 83.67% of the equity share capital of Air Asia India with the remaining 16.33% stake held by Air Asia Investment Ltd (AAIL), an arm of Malaysia-based Air Asia Group. Air Asia India operates under the brand name “AirAsia”. It is engaged in the business of providing the following services, domestic scheduled air passenger transport service, air cargo transport services and charter flight services in India. AirAsia India does not provide scheduled air passenger transport services on international routes, the CCI statement added. Tata Group took control of Air India in January this year following its successful bid and it is now in the process of reorganising its airline business. The business conglomerate currently has three separate airline brands namely Air India, Air Asia India and Vistara. With the acquisition of Air India, it now also has Air India Express as part of the group.