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The Indian government has denied reports that it has asked state-owned banks to withdraw funds from foreign currency accounts abroad in anticipation of their potential seizure with regard to the Cairn legal dispute, terming such information as "false and baseless".

"Condemning all such source-based reports as false, the Government of India said that these are totally incorrect reports which were not based on true facts. Certain vested parties appear to have orchestrated such misleading reporting, which often relies upon unnamed sources and presents a lopsided picture of factual and legal developments in the case," said an official statement.

It said that the India is "vigorously" defending its case in this legal dispute, and has filed an application on March 22 to set aside the "highly flawed" December 2020 international arbitral award in The Hague Court of Appeal.

"The government has raised several arguments that warrant setting aside the award. This proceeding is pending," the government said, adding that it is committed to pursuing all legal avenues to defend its case in this dispute worldwide.

It was also stated that the CEO and the representatives of Cairns have approached the government for discussions to resolve the matter. "Constructive discussions have been held and the Government remains open for an amicable solution to the dispute within the country's legal framework," the Finance Ministry statement said.