2021 (5) TMI 115 - Tri - Insolvency and Bankruptcy

Maintainability of application - initiation of CIRP - Corporate Debtor claims relief from the rigors of the Code triggered on account of a stale and time barred debt - HELD THAT - This application is filed only for review of the order passed by this Adjudicating Authority on 19.09.2019; review of the order passed by this Adjudicating Authority which is beyond the scope of the IBC. Furthermore, if this Applicant was aggrieved by the order passed by this Adjudicating Authority, the Applicant/erstwhile Board of Directors should have gone for an appeal against the same before the Hon'ble NCLAT. The Applicant/erstwhile Board of Director has filed an appeal against this order before the Hon'ble NCLAT and sought 10 days' time to settle the entire claim due and payable to the Financial Creditor. In spite of the time being sanctioned by the Hon'ble NCLAT, the Applicant/erstwhile Board of Directors has not settled the claim. Thereafter, the Applicant herein had also filed Civil Appeal No. 2621 of 2020 before the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India. However, the same was withdrawn without any liberty - there is no merit in the aforementioned relief sought for. Application dismissed.

Summary

Issues involved:
1. Relief sought by the erstwhile Board of Directors to be relieved from the rigors of the Code due to a stale debt.
2. Application to restore the status quo ante and dissolve the CIRP initiated for the Corporate Debtor.
3. Application to direct the Resolution Professional to accept an Expression of Interest and stay the operation of the Committee of Creditors meeting.

Analysis:
1. The erstwhile Board of Directors filed two applications seeking relief from the insolvency proceedings due to a stale debt. The Tribunal noted that the subsequent application was not numbered as the reliefs sought were the same in both applications. The Tribunal dismissed the application as it was beyond the scope of the IBC, emphasizing that any appeal should have been made to the NCLAT.

2. Another application was filed to restore the status quo ante and dissolve the CIRP initiated for the Corporate Debtor. The Tribunal considered detailed arguments from both parties but ultimately found no merit in the relief sought. The Respondent bank contended that the relief was not maintainable under the NCLT Rules, leading to the dismissal of the application.

3. A separate application was made to direct the Resolution Professional to accept an Expression of Interest belatedly submitted by the Applicant. The Applicant claimed that despite expressing interest, no communication was received from the RP. However, the CoC had already decided on liquidation, rendering the application meritless. The Tribunal dismissed this application in view of the liquidation order passed in a related matter.

In conclusion, the Tribunal dismissed all three applications - IA/652/IB/2020, SR. No. 824/2020, and IA/552/IB/2020 - due to lack of merit and non-maintainability under the relevant rules. The decisions were based on the specific legal provisions and the circumstances surrounding the applications, ultimately upholding the orders passed in the insolvency proceedings.