The High Court issued an order prohibiting anyone from implementing or acting on the privately initiated proposal by Adani until the matter is determined, according to Faith Odhiambo, president of the Law Society of Kenya, the petitioner in the case.
Adani did not immediately respond to a request for comment when contacted outside office hours.
The lawyers’ body and the Kenya Human Rights Commission, a non-governmental organisation, are challenging the government’s right to lease Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in the capital Nairobi to Adani Airport on the grounds that it violates the constitution.
“Leasing the strategic and profitable JKIA to a private entity is irrational” and contravenes the constitutional principles of “good governance, accountability, transparency and prudent and responsible use of public money,” they said in their submissions.
The parties also argue that the $1.85 billion deal between the government and Adani Airport is “unaffordable, threatens job losses, exposes the public disproportionately to fiscal risk and offers no value for money to the taxpayer.”
They say Kenya can independently raise funds to expand JKIA without leasing it for 30 years, according to their documents.
Under the terms of the build-and-operate agreement, Indian billionaire Gautam Adani’s company would upgrade Kenya’s largest aviation facility and East Africa’s busiest airport and build a second runway and a new passenger terminal.
The government has defended the deal, insisting that the airport is over capacity and urgently needs improvements.
Kenya Airports Authority acting director-general Henry Ogoye said in July that the proposal will undergo technical, financial and legal reviews to ensure it complies with the country’s public-private partnership laws.
The investment required is “significant and cannot be financed under current fiscal constraints without resorting to private financing,” Ogoye said.
Adani Airport, controlled by Asia’s second richest person, has a portfolio of eight airports that command more than 50% of India’s top 10 domestic routes. The airports account for 23% of Indian air traffic and serve 20% of the total passenger base.
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