Goutam Kumar Roy vs M/S. Dooteriah & Kalej Valley Tea ...
- CitationCompany Appeal (AT) (Ins) No. 1120 of 2019
Ratio decidendi
The rule this decision rests on
The Adjudicating Authority has no jurisdiction to examine the commercial and financial merits of a resolution plan that the Committee of Creditors has approved; those matters lie within the commercial wisdom of the Committee of Creditors, and an application that effectively challenges the plan on that ground is not maintainable before the Adjudicating Authority. An appeal against an order approving a resolution plan under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code must be filed within the limitation period prescribed for such appeals, and an appeal filed more than one year after the date of approval of the resolution plan is barred by time and cannot be entertained on its merits.
Written by Miss Lucy from the judgment below, not taken from a headnote.
Judgment
As delivered
IN THE MATTER OF: Goutam Kumar Roy & Ors. ....Appellants
Vs. Dooteriah & Kalej Valley Tea Estates Pvt. Ltd. & Ors. ...Respondents
Present For Appellants: Mr. Soumya Dutta, Advocate.
For Respondents: Ms. Shruti Agarwal, Advocate for R-3/RP Mr. Partha Sil, Advocate for R-4.
ORDER
(Virtual Mode) 12.01.2022: Heard both sides.
The Appellants have filed MA No.449/KB/2019 before the 'Adjudicating
Authority' (National Company Law Tribunal, Kolkata Bench) mentioning that
their claims were not considered by the 'Committee of Creditors' and the plan
was approved by the 'Adjudicating Authority'. Indeed, MA No.449/KB/2019 was
filed to recall the order dated 26.09.2018 of the Adjudicating Authority (National
Company Law Tribunal, Kolkata Bench) in CP (IB) No. 557/KB/2017 approving
the plan.
-2-
The Adjudicating Authority while passing the impugned order dated
11.07.2019 in Miscellaneous Application No.449/KB/2019 had inter alia
observed that
'It is a settled law that the CoC are the master for considering financial implication about the plan which is to be sanctioned and this Adjudicating Authority cannot have that jurisdiction. If the Operational Creditors are aggrieved with the CoC's decision and the other passed by this Adjudicating Authority approving the Plan, they may file appeal before the appropriate authority.'
Viewed in that perspective, the Adjudicating Authority was perforced to
come to a resultant conclusion that MA No.449/KB/2019 was not maintainable
and disposed of the same on that score.
It is brought to the fore that in the instant Case, the 'Approval of Resolution
Plan' was made on 25.09.2018 and the instant Appeal is preferred by the
Appellants before this Tribunal on 23.09.2019, more than one year from the date
of 'Approval of Resolution Plan' which is clearly barred by time. Looking at from
that angle, the instant Appeal sans merit.
In fine, the instant CA (AT) (Ins) No. 1120 of 2019 is dismissed. No costs.
Connected I.A. is closed.
[Justice M. Venugopal] Member (Judicial)
[V.P. Singh] Member (Technical)
sr/md Company Appeal (AT) (Ins) No. 1120 of 2019
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