Microsoft restores services, Delhi HC closes Nayara Energy's plea

The Hindu

a day ago

Nayara Energy informed the Delhi High Court on Wednesday (July 30, 2025) that Microsoft has restored cloud services to its cloud-based services, following which the court allowed the company to withdraw its petition.
Nayara Energy — an Indo-Russian oil refining and marketing company — had approached the court after being suddenly locked out of its Microsoft account, disrupting critical business operations.
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The company contended that Microsoft's unilateral action was based solely on its interpretation of recent European Union (EU) sanctions against Russia, despite Nayara being an Indian entity.
At the outset of the hearing, counsel for Nayara Energy told the court that 'the matter is resolved because they (Microsoft) have restored all services.' The court then allowed Nayara to withdraw the petition, granting liberty to approach the court again should Microsoft take similar action in the future.
Senior advocates Rajiv Nayyar and Dayan Krishnan, appearing for Nayara, argued that Microsoft had acted without notice and urged the court to record that any future termination of services should not be abrupt. 'At least they should give 3–4 days' notice before terminating. There can't be an abrupt shutting,' the lawyers said.
Narrating the background, Mr. Krishnan said, 'Originally, there were servers. Then the Ukraine war started. They (Microsoft) came to us to move to cloud servers. We were apprehensive. They assured us: 'Don't worry, the Indian entity will not be affected by any of these (sanctions).' After that, this has happened.'
Microsoft's counsel said the service has been restored but further clarified that no assurances could be given for the future. 'They (Nayara) are a sanctioned entity by the EU. We have restored today, but I can't make these statements for the future,' Microsoft's counsel submitted.
Taking note of the developments, the court observed, 'Earlier, without notice, they had shut their services. You came to court. Now they have restored it. The grievance stands mitigated. In the future, we believe they would not do the same exercise, and as and when they intend to, they will perhaps give you notice. If they don't, you can come back to court.'
In a recent press statement Nayara had said, 'While the sanctions originate exclusively from the EU, Microsoft—a U.S.-headquartered corporation—has chosen to withdraw services from Nayara Energy without any legal requirement to do so under U.S. or Indian law'.
According to a Microsoft spokesperson, 'Microsoft is committed to supporting all its customers in India and worldwide, and has restored services for Nayara Energy. We are engaged in ongoing discussions with the European Union towards service continuity for the organization.'
Nayara Energy said it is a vital contributor to India's energy security, accounting for approximately 8% of the country's total refining capacity, approx 7% of its retail petrol pump network.