New Delhi, Sep 29 : The merger of Sony Pictures, a subsidiary of Japan's Sony Group, with Zee Entertainment has been delayed further by a few months. 'Although the transaction was previously expected to close by the end of the first half of the fiscal year ended on March 31, 2024, based on the latest progress, it is currently expected to close in the months ahead. Sony continues to assess the impact of the transaction on its consolidated financial results," Sony said in a statement. 'Both companies continue to proceed with the necessary procedures to complete the transaction," the statement added. Earlier this month, Zee suffered a fresh setback after Axis Finance approached an appellate tribunal to challenge the NCLT approval for of the merger received in August. IDBI Bank has already contested the NCLT order in the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT). The merger to create an entertainment giant was first announced in 2021. It was delayed due to issues including a legal battle with lenders over loan defaults by a Zee group entity. The combination also ran into problems after SEBI banned Zee's CEO, Punit Goenka, who was to head the merged entity, from the boards of listed companies for a year. /IANS