Supreme Court Declines To Interfere With Adani Plan For Jaiprakash, Urges NCLAT To Expedite Vedanta Appeals

The Supreme Court on Monday, 6 April, declined to interfere with the implementation of the resolution plan submitted by Adani Enterprises for Jaiprakash Associates Ltd, and directing the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) to expedite hearing of the appeals filed by Vedanta Ltd, scheduled for 10 April.

A Bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi said:

“In view of the fact that Company Appeal AT (Ins) 552, 553 of 2026 are now listed for final hearing before the NCLAT on 10th April, 2026, we see no reason to interfere with the impugned order passed by the NCLAT. However, having regard to the nature of the decision and its consequential implications, we request the NCLAT to hear the appeal on out of term basis on the date fixed or immediately on the next working day, if the arguments are not concluded.”

The court also said that if the monitoring committee needs to take any major policy decision, it must first do so by taking leave of the NCLAT. Noting that the interest of Vedanta has been adequately protected, the court said there is no necessity to give any interim directions and observed:

"The interest of the appellant has been adequately protected by the NCLAT as per para 7 and 8 of the impugned order, there is no necessity to issue any interim order."

Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Vedanta, submitted that the core issues concerning the resolution plan are yet to be adjudicated by the NCLAT. He argued that allowing the plan to proceed, including the proposed delisting of Jaiprakash Associates, could cause serious and potentially irreversible consequences for creditors, even if the process is reversed later. He argued that under Vedanta's proposal, creditors would be receiving higher amount and its bid was the highest. He said that despite the highest bid, the CoC was willing to hand over Jaypee Industries to Adani Enterprises for about Rs. 3000 crores. 

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the CoC, contended that implementation should continue as directed in the interim order, which explicitly preserves the outcome of the appeal. He noted that any structural or listing changes can be reversed if the NCLAT ultimately sets aside the order, and that concerns of irreversibility are overstated.

Justice Bagchi observed:

“Today what has been rejected by the NCLT is the objection to the decision of the CoC to approve. And now that CoC decision has to be approved by the adjudicating authority.”

The court however, declined to go into the merits of the matter and directed hearing by the NCLAT on priority basis. 

Background

The dispute arises from the 17 March 2026 order of the NCLT Allahabad Bench, which approved Adani's resolution plan with a 93.81% vote of the Committee of Creditors (CoC). Vedanta challenged the plan before the NCLAT, which on 24 March 2026 declined interim relief and allowed implementation to continue, subject to the appeal's final outcome.

The insolvency proceedings concern Jaiprakash Associates Ltd, a company in the cement and construction sectors, which was admitted into the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) in June 2024 on a petition filed by ICICI Bank following prolonged financial distress. During the resolution process, Vedanta submitted a higher overall bid of approximately Rs. 17,000 crore. However, the Committee of Creditors (CoC) approved Adani Enterprises' resolution plan, valued at around Rs. 15,000 crore, citing stronger upfront payment terms despite its lower total value.

Vedanta argued that its proposal reflected a higher net asset value of about Rs. 12,505.85 crore and that its addendum dated 8 November 2025 had been wrongly disregarded by the CoC. It submitted that approving a lower bid contradicted the fundamental objective of maximising value under the Code.

The NCLAT, while declining interim relief, allowed implementation of the approved plan to continue, clarifying that all actions would remain subject to the final outcome of the appeal.

Click Here To Read/Download NCLAT Order of March 24, 2026

Click Here To Read/Download NCLT Allahabad Order of March 17, 2026