• Litigation
• 2 min read

Delhi High Court restrains transfer of Legends League Cricket rights in JioStar dispute

JioStar had moved the court under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, seeking urgent interim relief, including securing dues of Rs 3.59 crore and restraining the respondents from dealing with the league's rights.

• ET Bureau

• Published On Mar 23, 2026 at 10:02 PM IST

The Delhi High Court has restrained Absolute Legends Sports from transferring or creating third-party rights over the media and commercial rights of the Legends League CrickMasters T20 tournament, in a dispute with JioStar India.

Passing an interim order on March 18, Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar said such a transfer could lead to a "complete erosion of the subject matter of the dispute", warranting immediate protection pending arbitration.

Also Read: Delhi HC sends JioStar-Legends League Cricket promoter dispute to mediation

Advt JioStar had moved the court under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, seeking urgent interim relief, including securing dues of Rs 3.59 crore and restraining the respondents from dealing with the league's rights.

The dispute has its origins in a recent rights transaction involving the league. Blue God Entertainment, formerly Indra Industries, had acquired long-term licensing rights for Legends League Cricket for Rs 49 crore through a mix of share swap and cash, covering media, sponsorship, franchise development and global content distribution.

The court noted that Absolute Legends Sports did not dispute that certain amounts were owed to JioStar, but no settlement could be reached despite mediation efforts, primarily due to disagreements over repayment timelines.

"Even today, when the matter was taken up, the respondent sought further time to place a better offer," the court recorded, adding that there was an urgent need to ensure that its assets were not dissipated.

Accordingly, the court restrained Absolute Legends Sports from "in any manner, creating any third-party rights, or transferring, assigning, or otherwise dealing with" the league's media and commercial rights until further orders.

The order effectively freezes any ongoing or proposed commercial arrangements involving the league's media rights, while stopping short of restraining the conduct or broadcast of the tournament.

Advt The matter is now listed for further hearing on April 22.

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Earlier, the High Court had referred the dispute to mediation and directed Absolute Legends Sports to disclose details of its commercial transactions and receivables.

Senior counsel Abhimanyu Bhandari, appearing for the company, had informed the court that an affidavit would be filed disclosing all ongoing commercial arrangements, including agreements with Blue God Entertainment.

Absolute Legends Sports had also undertaken that receivables from such arrangements would be deposited with the court towards admitted liabilities, while seeking flexibility to meet operational expenses.

Separately, JioStar has filed an insolvency petition against Absolute Legends Sports before the National Company Law Tribunal under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, citing unpaid operational dues of about Rs 3.59 crore arising from agreements signed in September 2024.

The broadcaster has alleged that the dues were acknowledged but remain unpaid despite reminders and a statutory demand notice issued in December 2024. The NCLT has sought additional filings on maintainability and listed the matter for hearing. The matter has been adjourned to April 9.