SBI Back In Reliance Infratel CoC As Supreme Court Sets Aside NCLAT Order Excluding Consortium Lenders

The Supreme Court of India has allowed the appeal filed by the State Bank of India against an October 14, 2022 order of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, which had upheld the exclusion of SBI and other lenders from the Committee of Creditors (CoC) in the insolvency of Reliance Infratel Limited.A bench of Justices P.S. Narasimha and Alok Aradhe set aside the NCLAT ruling and restored the status of lenders claiming under corporate guarantees as financial creditors and directed their...

Coparcener Claiming Guarantor's Property Cannot Intervene In Guarantor's Insolvency Case: NCLAT

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) at Delhi has recently held that a person claiming coparcenary rights over a guarantor's property cannot be impleaded in personal guarantor insolvency proceedings (Section 95), as such proceedings are confined to personal guarantors. A bench of Judicial Member Justice Sharad Kumar Sharma and Technical Member Jatindranath Swain emphasised that the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code limits such proceedings to specific individuals acting as...

NCLAT Rejects EPFO Claim In Dhruv Wellness CIRP, Finds Internal Communication Without PF Assessment Insufficient

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) at Delhi has recently dismissed an appeal filed by the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) seeking admission of a Rs. 61.36 lakh claim in the CIRP of Dhruv Wellness Ltd., holding that a claim based only on an internal communication and without any assessment under Section 7A of the EPF & MP Act could not be sustained. The tribunal further observed that the appellant must bear the consequence of not crystallising the claim at the...

IBC Offences Triable Only By Special Court Where Company's Registered Office Is Located: Madhya Pradesh HC

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has held that offences under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 can be tried only by the Special Court having jurisdiction over the place where a company's registered office is situated, ruling that a Gwalior court lacked inherent jurisdiction to entertain a complaint against a company whose registered office is in New Delhi.“From the bare reading of section 436 it is clear that offences shall be triable only by the Special Court established under section 435...

IBC Auction Purchaser Not Liable For Past Electricity Dues: Telangana HC Sets Aside ₹2.64 Lakh Demand

The Telangana High Court has recently set aside a demand raised against an auction purchaser under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, holding that such a purchaser cannot be made liable for electricity dues of the previous owner where the claim was not part of the insolvency process, and further that a demand raised after nearly 16 years is barred by limitation. Justice Renuka Yara, allowing the writ petition, emphasised that once the resolution process concludes, undisclosed statutory dues...

Homebuyers With RERA Refund Orders Still 'Allottees', Must Meet IBC Threshold: NCLT Chennai

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) at Chennai has held that homebuyers who have obtained refund orders from RERA cannot be treated differently from other allottees for initiating insolvency proceedings, ruling that all such buyers must meet the collective threshold under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code. “The allottee even after the order of RERA directing for refund by the Corporate Debtor continues to be allottee and has to mandatorily comply with Section 7 (1) 2nd Proviso. The Home...

Suspended Director Cannot Reopen CIRP Process After Repeated Eligibility Defaults: NCLT Bengaluru

The Bengaluru Bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on 6 April, refused to permit a suspended director of a corporate debtor to submit a resolution plan at a belated stage after he repeatedly failed to satisfy eligibility conditions under the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP), reiterating the strict time-bound framework under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016. A Bench comprising Judicial Member Sunil Kumar Aggarwal and Technical Member Radhakrishna Sreepada...

Public Announcement Under IBC Sufficient, Individual Notice Not Required: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court on 24 April, held that under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, individual notice to each creditor is not required and that a public announcement under Section 15 of the Code constitutes sufficient notice to corporate creditors. A Bench comprising Justices Ajit Kumar and Swarupama Chaturvedi, while allowing a petition by South East U.P. Power Transmission Company Limited (and a connected petition by Tata Steel Limited) further held that creditors must exercise...

IBC Overrides Electricity Act In Conflict, Pre-CIRP Dues Cannot Be Enforced: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court on 24 April, held that the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC), being a later law, prevails over the Electricity Act, 2003 in case of inconsistency. The Bench of Justices Ajit Kumar and Swarupama Chaturvedi allowed the writ petition and held that Section 238 of the IBC gives the Code overriding effect over other statutes, including sector-specific laws. It held: “The legislative intent is thus to create a self-contained and comprehensive framework where all...

Subsequent Demand Notices Cannot Create Fresh Cause Of Action Against Personal Guarantor: NCLT Mumbai

On 23 April, the Mumbai Bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) held that subsequent demand notices issued to a personal guarantor do not give rise to a fresh cause of action for initiating proceedings under Section 95 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, and that limitation must be computed from the first invocation of the guarantee.Section 95 deals with the initiation of insolvency resolution process against a personal guarantor to a corporate debtor.A Bench comprising...

NCLT Cannot Entertain Challenge To Statutory Development Authority Orders Under IBC: NCLAT New Delhi

The New Delhi National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), on 6 April, held that orders passed by statutory authorities in exercise of statutory powers cannot be challenged before the NCLT under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016. A Bench comprising Chairperson Justice Ashok Bhushan and Technical Member Indevar Pandey observed: “The Tribunal held that sanction of Plan, which is in exercise of Statutory jurisdiction of Lucknow Development Authority under Uttar Pradesh Urban Planning...

NCLT Asking Parties To Explore Settlement Not A Reference To Mediation: NCLAT

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) at Delhi has observed that asking parties in a long-pending oppression and mismanagement dispute to explore settlement is not the same as referring the matter to mediation. The ruling came in an appeal filed by Vijay Data against Data Ingenious Global Ltd and others, challenging an order of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Jaipur Bench, which had dismissed his application seeking recall of an earlier order dated February 19, 2026. ...