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TMI Blog2020 (9) TMI 1080X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ll the detailed information and records, including the sale deeds relating to Jaipur property and documents relating to lease and shareholding of the Australian Company. The lockdown had started about two months after the order of CIRP had been passed by this Adjudicating Authority. If a director or a personnel of the Corporate Debtor does not cooperate or creates hindrance or disobeys the instructions of the RP, the law is not toothless and can deal with him/them in a stringent manner. The applicant has acted in a most unruly manner, when, instead of cooperating with the instructions of the RP, he has chosen to level false and frivolous allegations against the RP, and attributing motives and using the unacceptable language, like HARASSMENT AND UNDUE PRESSURE , without realizing that the RP is issuing instructions in performance of his statutory duties. The applicant should have realized that he was duty-bound to provide all the assistance and cooperation to the RP in taking IMMEDIATE custody of all the assets and records, and his failure or reluctance in doing so may land all the directors of the company in trouble. Application dismissed. - I.A. (IB) No. /KB/2020, I.A. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tered office of the company. It is further submitted that in the mean time, the RP had called second COC meeting on 22nd May, 2020 which was further extended to 28th May, 2020 and held through Skype. Upon receipt of the notice of 2nd COC meeting, applicant appointed an authorized representative to make necessary submissions. The authorised representative tried to join the meeting and humbly requested the respondent to allow him to continue by citing reasons for the same but the respondent did not allow him to continue in the meeting citing his interpretation of Section 24(2) of the Code. On 30.05.2020 the applicant has received minutes of the said meeting through email. While perusing the minutes of the said meeting, applicant came to know that respondent has made several allegations against the suspended board of directors for non cooperation which was shocking and surprising to the applicant. 3. In protest against the allegations made in the minutes of the said COC meeting, the applicant wrote a letter on 05th June, 2020 stating the facts on the allegations made in the said minute and made the RP aware about the full cooperation provided to him by the suspended board of direct ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... retext of an application U/s 19(2) of IBC 2016 ; and direction to the respondent to refrain from creating undue pressure upon the applicant, given his age, by threats and or other means to support the respondent during the currency of this pandemic on the pretext of CIRP timelines; and to consider the situation of COVID 19 and at least consider the period of exclusion announced by the IBBI and refrain from taking any steps with respect to the ongoing CIRP within this period; 7. In addition to the above application of the suspended Board of directors, another application has been filed by Mr. Kanchan Dutta appointed in this matter by this A/A on 23rd January 2020 as Interim Resolution Professional and thereafter confirmed as the Resolution Professional by the COC on 20th January 2020. He has submitted that he is in receipt of the application on 8th June 2020, and the applicant does not and cannot have any cause of action against the Resolution Professional as his intention is to prevent and causing hurdles in the CIRP process of the Corporate Debtor and for delaying the CIRP process of the Corporate Debtor and the resolution of the CD. He submits that the CIRP commenced on 23 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ommodities Private Limited. The RP has sought for details of all assets from 23rd January 2020 but till date, i.e. till June 2020, in 6 months no detailed information has been provided, which can actually help the RP proceed with the valuation of the assets and preparation of Information Memorandum. The Applicant has not given possession and custody of the property at Jaipur to the RP, the Applicant has ot given custody and possession of the share certificates except for the depository details of Arvind International Limited of the investments or the control over the demat shares. The Applicant for reasons best known to him is not signing the quarterly audited accounts for the period October - December 2019. As per the listing requirements, quarterly audited financial statements are required to be filed with the stock exchange within a specified period. The due date for filing such audited statement has expired in February 2020 and for each date of delay, the Corporate Debtor is attracting a liability of ₹ 5000/- per day from the stock exchange. 8. It is further submitted that since the period of the financial statements pertain to the pre-CIRP period, the RP cannot solely ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... egarding accounts under the instruction of the MD/CFO and share limited information with the RP. The MD/CFO, it appears that is not availing of his services any more for reasons best known to him. The MD/CFO on the one hand will not ask any person to render assistance and on the other hand will take the plea that due to age and covid pandemic, he is not in a position to render any assistance. The Applicant strongly states that non-cooperation and creation of hurdles in the CIRP is the main intention of the Respondent directors. The RP from January 2020 has sought for all the above details and information but till date none has been provided. The Applicant in the said application has very well relied upon the corona pandemic and how the same has shut the Applicant in his home. The RP states what held up the Applicant in February and March to do the needful. The business of the CD is a closed operation. Thus, the Applicant had ample time and opportunity to the information to the RP in the months of February and March 2020. 10. It is stated that the Registered office of the Corporate Debtor is located in a 100 square feet space in Room No 402 of Nigam Center, 4th Floor, 155 Lenin S ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tting down the shutters of the office himself. The presence of the Respondent No. 1 in person is not at all required to give access to the office. The same can be given by the person who has the key to the office. Presuming the key of the office is with the Respondent No. 1, the Respondent No. 1 can very well send the same to the Respondent since as per the law, the possession of the assets of the CD is to be kept with the RP. The RP is not asking the Respondent No. 1 to jeopardize his life or risk his life as he is stating. 13. Having gone through the detailed facts mentioned in both the applications/defence submitted by the parties and after having heard both the counsel at length, we would like to refer to and reproduce Section 19 of the Code. 19. (1) The personnel of the corporate debtor, its promoters or any other person associated with the management of the corporate debtor shall extend all assistance and cooperation to the interim resolution professional as may be required by him in managing the affairs of the corporate debtor. (2) Where any personnel of the corporate debtor, its promoter or any other person required to assist or cooperate with the interim resoluti ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... RP in the performance of his statutory duties assigned to him by the Code, and any hindrance or obstruction caused or intended to be caused by the CMD/directors and other personnel shall subject them to legal consequences. None of the contentions raised and the allegations levelled by the applicant has been able to convince us. The applicant being 62 years, if unable to himself do, could have directed some other director or personnel to provide access to the office premises so that the RP could have taken possession of the relevant record. He was also legally duty-bound to provide all the detailed information and records, including the sale deeds relating to Jaipur property and documents relating to lease and shareholding of the Australian Company. The lockdown had started about two months after the order of CIRP had been passed by this Adjudicating Authority. The correspondence exchanged between the Applicant and the CMD clearly points towards intentional and egoistic disobedience in providing the required information/record and cooperation which he and other directors were duty-bound to provide to the RP. The provisions of the Code provide that the RP, SHALL TAKE IMMEDIATE CUSTO ..... 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