Independent Auditor’s Report
Report on the Audit of the Standalone Financial Statements
Qualified Opinion
1. We have audited the accompanying standalone financial statements of SpiceJet Limited ('the Company'), which comprise the Balance Sheet as at March 31, 2023, the Statement of Profit and Loss (including Other Comprehensive Income), the Statement of Cash Flow and the Statement of Changes in Equity for the year then ended, and notes to the standalone financial statements, including a summary of the significant accounting policies and other explanatory information.
2. In our opinion and to the best of our information and according to the explanations given to us, except for the effects of the matters described in the Basis for Qualified Opinion section of our report, the aforesaid standalone financial statements give the information required by the Companies Act, 2013 ('the Act') in the manner so required and give a true and fair view in conformity with the Indian Accounting Standards ('Ind AS') specified under section 133 of the Act read with the Companies (Indian Accounting Standards) Rules, 2015 and other accounting principles generally accepted in India, of the state of affairs of the Company as at March 31, 2023, and its loss (including other comprehensive income), its cash flows and the changes in equity for the year ended on that date.
Basis for Qualified Opinion
3. As stated in Note 49 to the accompanying standalone financial statement, the management of the Company had recognized recoverable of Rs. 15,549.03 million over the periods up to September 30, 2021 for recovery of rent, maintenance and other expenses incurred on Boeing 737 Max aircrafts, which were grounded since March 2019. As further explained in the said note, the Company had settled the aforesaid claims with Boeing and 737 Max aircraft lessors during the year ended March 31, 2022. In our assessment, there was no virtual certainty to recognise any recoverable until September
30, 2021, as required under Ind AS 37, 'Provisions, Contingent Liabilities and Contingent Assets' and accordingly, upon settlement of the said claims in the quarter ended December 31, 2021, the Company should have restated the opening reserves to reverse the recoverable along with consequent reversal of 'Other income' and related 'Foreign exchange loss (net)' impact recorded in earlier years, and should have recorded the entire settlement amount in the year ended March 31, 2022, in accordance with Ind AS 8 Accounting Policies, Changes in Accounting Estimates and Errors'. Had the Company recognised the entire settlement gain during the year ended March 31, 2022 with restatement of earlier years, the reported loss for the year ended March
31, 2022 would have been lower by Rs. 12,418.96 million. Our opinion for the year ended March 31, 2022 was also qualified in respect of this matter.
4. As stated in Note 50 to the accompanying standalone financial statement which describes the details related to an ongoing litigation in reference to which the Hon'ble High Court of Delhi has given its judgements and orders to pay interest on advances received from Mr. Kalanithi Maran and M/s KAL Airways Private Limited ('the Erstwhile Promoters'). Due to reasons explained in the aforesaid note, the management is of the view that the impact of the aforementioned judgement on the accompanying standalone financial statement is presently unascertainable. In absence of such computation, we are unable to comment on the adjustments, if any, that may be required to the accompanying standalone financial statement on account of aforesaid matter.
5. We conducted our audit in accordance with the Standards on Auditing specified under section 143(10) of the Act. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor's Responsibilities for the Audit of the Standalone Financial Statements section of our report. We are independent of the Company in accordance with the Code of Ethics issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India ('ICAI') together with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the standalone financial statements under the provisions of the Act and the rules thereunder, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements and the Code of Ethics. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our qualified opinion.
Material Uncertainty Related to Going Concern
6. We draw attention to Note 2A(a)(iii) to the accompanying standalone financial statement which describes that the Company has incurred net loss (after other comprehensive income) of Rs. 15,031.25 million during the year ended March 31, 2023, and, as of that date, the Company's accumulated losses amounts to Rs. 74,156.90 million which have resulted in complete erosion of its net worth and the current liabilities have exceeded its current assets by Rs. 75,809.61 million as at March 31, 2023. These conditions and other matters set forth in the aforesaid note, indicates the existence of material uncertainty that may cast significant doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. Based on management's assessment of future business projections and other mitigating factors as described in the aforesaid note, which, inter alia, is dependent on successful renegotiation of payment terms to various parties and raising of additional funds, the management is of the view that the going concern basis of accounting is appropriate for preparation of accompanying standalone financial statement.
In relation to the above key audit matter, our audit work included, but was not restricted to, the following procedures:
• Obtained an understanding of the management's process for identification of events or conditions
that may cast significant doubt over the Company's ability to continue as a going concern and the process to assess the corresponding mitigating factors existing against each such event or condition;
• Evaluated the design and tested the operating effectiveness of key controls around aforesaid identification of events or conditions and mitigating factors, and controls around cash flow projections prepared by the management;
• Obtained the cash flow projections for the next twelve months from the management, basis their future business plans;
• Held discussions with the management personnel to understand the assumptions used and estimates made by them for determining the cash flow projections for the next twelve months;
• Evaluated the reasonableness of the key assumptions such as expected growth in the revenue, expected optimisation in the costs etc. based on historical data trends, future market trends, existing market conditions, business plans and our understanding of the business and the industry;
• Tested the arithmetical accuracy of the calculations and performed sensitivity analysis around possible variation in the above key assumptions; and
• Evaluated the appropriateness and adequacy of disclosures in the standalone financial statements with respect to this matter in accordance with the applicable accounting standards.
Our opinion is not modified in respect of this matter.
Key Audit Matters
7. Key audit matters are those matters that, in our professional judgment, were of most significance in our audit of the standalone financial statements of the current year. These matters were addressed in the context of our audit of the standalone financial statements as a whole, and in forming our opinion thereon, and we do not provide a separate opinion on these matters.
8. In addition to the matters described in the Basis for Qualified Opinion section and Material Uncertainty Related to Going Concern section, we have determined the matters described below to be the key audit matters to be communicated in our report.
Information other than the Standalone Financial Statements and Auditor’s Report thereon
9. The Company's Board of Directors are responsible for the other information. The other information comprises the information included in the Annual Report, but does not include the standalone financial statements and our auditor's report thereon. The Annual Report is expected to be made available to us after the date of this auditor's report.
Our opinion on the standalone financial statements does not cover the other information and we will not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.
In connection with our audit of the standalone financial statements, our responsibility is to read the other information identified above when it becomes available and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the standalone financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated.
When we read the Annual Report, if we conclude that there is a material misstatement therein, we are required to communicate the matter to those charged with governance.
Responsibilities of Management and Those Charged with Governance for the Standalone Financial Statements
10. The accompanying standalone financial statements have been approved by the Company's Board of Directors. The Company's Board of Directors are responsible for the matters stated in section 134(5) of the Act with respect to the preparation and presentation of these standalone financial statements that give a true and fair view of the financial position, financial performance including other comprehensive income, changes in equity and cash flows of the Company in accordance with the Ind AS specified under section 133 of the Act and other accounting principles generally accepted in India. This responsibility also includes maintenance of adequate accounting records in accordance with the provisions of the Act for safeguarding of the assets of the Company and for preventing and detecting frauds and other irregularities; selection and application of appropriate accounting policies; making judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; and design, implementation and maintenance of adequate internal financial controls, that were operating effectively for ensuring the accuracy and completeness of the accounting records, relevant to the preparation and presentation of the standalone financial statements that give a true and fair view and are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.
11. In preparing the standalone financial statements, the Board of Directors are responsible for assessing the Company's ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the Board of Directors either intend to liquidate the Company or to cease operations, or has no realistic alternative but to do so.
12. Those Board of Directors are also responsible for overseeing the Company's financial reporting process.
Auditor’s Responsibilities for the Audit of the Standalone Financial Statements
13. Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the standalone financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor's report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with Standards on Auditing will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these standalone financial statements.
14. As part of an audit in accordance with Standards on Auditing, specified under section 143(10) of the Act, we exercise professional judgment and maintain professional skepticism throughout the audit. We also:
• Identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the standalone financial statements, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forg ery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal control;
• Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances. Under section 143(3)(i) of the Act we are also responsible for expressing our opinion on whether the Company has adequate internal financial controls with reference to financial statements in place and the operating effectiveness of such controls;
• Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates and related disclosures made by management;
• Conclude on the appropriateness of Board of Directors' use of the going concern basis of accounting and, based on the audit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty exists related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists, we are required to draw attention in our auditor's report to the related disclosures in the standalone financial statements or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditor's report. However, future events or conditions may cause the Company to cease to continue as a going concern; and
• Evaluate the overall presentation, structure and content of the standalone financial statements, including the disclosures, and whether the standalone financial statements represent the underlying transactions and events in a manner that achieves fair presentation.
15. We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.
16. We also provide those charged with governance with a statement that we have complied with relevant ethical requirements regarding independence, and to communicate with them all relationships and other matters that may reasonably be thought to bear on our independence, and where applicable, related safeguards.
17. From the matters communicated with those charged with governance, we determine those matters that were of most significance in the audit of the standalone financial statements of the current year and are therefore the key audit matters. We describe these matters in our auditor's report unless law or regulation precludes public disclosure about the matter or when, in extremely rare circumstances, we determine that a matter should not be communicated in our report because the adverse consequences of doing so would reasonably be expected to outweigh the public interest benefits of such communication.
Report on Other Legal and Regulatory Requirements
18. As required by section 197(16) of the Act, based on our audit, we report that the Company has paid remuneration to its directors during the year in accordance with the provisions of and limits laid down under section 197 read with Schedule V to the Act.
19. As required by the Companies (Auditor's Report) Order, 2020 ('the Order') issued by the Central Government of India in terms of section 143(11) of the Act we give in the Annexure A, a statement on the matters specified in paragraphs 3 and 4 of the Order, to the extent applicable.
20. Further to our comments in Annexure A, as required by section 143(3) of the Act, based on our audit, we report, to the extent applicable, that:
a) We have sought and obtained all the information and explanations which to the best of our knowledge and belief were necessary for the purpose of our audit of the accompanying standalone financial statements;
b) Except for the effects of the matters described in the Basis for Qualified Opinion section, in our opinion, proper books of account as required by law have been kept by the Company so far as it appears from our examination of those books;
c) The standalone financial statements dealt with by this report are in agreement with the books of account;
d) Except for the effects of the matters described in the Basis for Qualified Opinion section, in our opinion, the aforesaid standalone financial statements comply with Ind AS specified under section 133 of the Act;
e) The matters described in paragraph 3, 4 and 6 under the Basis for Qualified Opinion section and Material Uncertainty Related to Going Concern section, in our opinion, may have an adverse effect on the functioning of the Company;
f) On the basis of the written representations received from the directors and taken on record by the Board of Directors, none of the directors are disqualified as on March 31, 2023 from being appointed as a director in terms of section 164(2) of the Act;
g) The qualification relating to the maintenance of accounts and other matters connected therewith are as stated in the Basis for Qualified Opinion section;
h) With respect to the adequacy of the internal financial controls with reference to financial statements of the Company as on March 31, 2023 and the operating effectiveness of such controls, refer to our separate Report in Annexure B wherein we have expressed a modified opinion; and
i) With respect to the other matters to be included in the Auditor's Report in accordance with rule 11 of the Companies (Audit and Auditors) Rules, 2014 (as amended), in our opinion and to the best of our information and according to the explanations given to us:
i. The Company, as detailed in note 48 and 50 to the standalone financial statements, has disclosed the impact of pending litigations on its financial position as at March 31, 2023;
ii. The Company did not have any long-term contracts including derivative contracts for which there were any material foreseeable losses as at March 31, 2023;
iii. There were no amounts which were required to be transferred to the Investor Education and Protection Fund by the Company during the year ended March 31, 2023;
iv. (a) The management has represented that,
to the best of its knowledge and belief, on the date of this audit report, no funds have been advanced or loaned or invested (either from borrowed funds or securities premium or any other sources or kind of funds) by the Company to or in any person(s) or entity(ies), including foreign entities ('the intermediaries'), with the understanding, whether recorded in writing or otherwise, that the intermediary shall, whether, directly or indirectly lend or invest in other persons or entities identified in any manner whatsoever by or on behalf of the
Company ('the Ultimate Beneficiaries') or provide any guarantee, security or the like on behalf the Ultimate Beneficiaries;
(b) The management has represented that, to the best of its knowledge and belief, on the date of this audit report, no funds have been received by the Company from any person(s) or entity(ies), including foreign entities ('the Funding Parties'), with the understanding, whether recorded in writing or otherwise, that the Company shall, whether directly or indirectly, lend or invest in other persons or entities identified in any manner whatsoever by or on behalf of the Funding Party ('Ultimate Beneficiaries') or provide any guarantee, security or the like on behalf of the Ultimate Beneficiaries; and
(c) Based on such audit procedures performed as considered reasonable and appropriate in the circumstances, nothing has come to our notice that has caused us to believe that the management representations under sub-clauses (a) and (b) above contain any material misstatement.
v. The Company has not declared or paid any dividend during the year ended March 31, 2023; and
vi. Proviso to Rule 3(1) of the Companies (Accounts) Rules, 2014 requires all companies which use accounting software for maintaining their books of account, to use such an accounting software which has a feature of audit trail, with effect from the financial year beginning on 1 April 2023 and accordingly, reporting under Rule 11(g) of Companies (Audit and Auditors) Rules, 2014 (as amended) is not applicable for the current financial year.
For Walker Chandiok & Co LLP
Chartered Accountants Firm's Registration No.: 001076N/N500013
Neeraj Goel
Partner
Membership Number: 099514 UDIN: 23099514BGSCPH6419 Place: Gurugram Date: August 14, 2023
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