NCLAT Holds Appeal E-Filed At 9 PM On Last Condonable Day Within Limitation

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) in Delhi has held that an insolvency appeal filed electronically at 9 PM on the last day of the condonable period cannot be treated as time-barred merely because it was filed after the tribunal's working hours.

A bench of Justice Ashok Bhushan and Technical Member Barun Mitra ruled that the Delhi High Court's e-filing rules could not be relied upon to treat the appeals as having been filed on the next day.

“There being no Notification by the High Court that e-filing Rules is to apply to NCLAT, we are not persuaded to accept the submission of the Respondent that under Rule 14.2, e-filing after 1600Hrs has to be treated as e-filing on the next date,” the tribunal held.

The ruling came on applications filed by Acrow Realcon Pvt. Ltd. and other appellants seeking condonation of a 15-day delay in filing appeals against a February 13, 2026 order of the National Company Law Tribunal's Ahmedabad Bench.

The appeals were e-filed on March 30, 2026 at about 9 PM. Union Bank of India opposed the applications, arguing that online filings made after 4 PM should be treated as having been filed on the next working day under Rule 14.2 of the Delhi High Court Electronic Filing Rules.

According to the bank, the appeals ought to be regarded as having been filed on March 31, 2026 and therefore beyond the period within which delay could be condoned.

Examining the objection, the appellate tribunal noted that NCLAT functions under its own rules and directions governing electronic filing.

The appellate tribunal noted that NCLAT's own framework for electronic filing governed the issue before it. It pointed to a December 24, 2022 order issued by the tribunal's registry, which clarified that limitation for appeals would be reckoned from the date of e-filing.

It also found no material on record to show that the Delhi High Court's e-filing rules had ever been extended to proceedings before NCLAT.

Against that backdrop, the tribunal examined the Supreme Court's ruling in Raj Kumar Yadav v. Samir Kumar Mahaseth. The judgment, the Bench noted, interpreted the word "day" as a full 24-hour period beginning at midnight and made it clear that procedural rules cannot whittle down a limitation period prescribed by statute.

Applying that principle, the tribunal concluded that the appeals filed at 9 PM on March 30, 2026 could not be treated as having been filed beyond the condonable period.

“Even if for argument sake the submission of the Counsel for the Respondent is accepted that Rule 14.2 of the E-filing Rules of the High Court of Delhi are applicable, in view of the law laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in paragraph 11, when power has been given to condone the delay upto 15 days under Section 61 of the IBC, the said power can be exercised for condonation of delay. When the appeals were filed on 45th day i.e. till before 12.00 pm of 31.03.2026, the definition of 'day' as occurring in Section 61 is what has been laid down by the Supreme Court in 'Raj Kumar Yadav',” the tribunal observed.

The tribunal also relied on the Supreme Court's decision in Sanket Kumar Agarwal v. APG Logistics Pvt. Ltd., which took note of NCLAT's December 24, 2022 order and recorded that limitation for appeals before the appellate tribunal is to be computed with reference to the date of e-filing.

Apart from the limitation issue, the appellants submitted that the NCLT order was detailed and involved multiple parties, complex factual findings and issues relating to admission and rejection of claims, related-party status and reconstitution of the committee of creditors.

Time was also required to circulate the judgment among stakeholders, obtain instructions from different appellants, secure board approvals, engage counsel, collate records and complete execution of appeal papers.

After examining those explanations, the tribunal found that sufficient cause had been shown for condoning the delay.

“We find sufficient explanation given by the Appellant for explaining 15 days' delay in filing the Appeals which is within condonable period,” the tribunal held.

The tribunal accordingly allowed the applications and condoned the 15-day delay in filing the appeals.