GIOVANOLA BINNY IN LIQUIDATION Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Court vide its order dated. 15.12.1982 ordered winding up of M/s. Giovanola Binny Ltd. (in liquidation). Thereafter, the Official Liquidator filed a report regarding the sale of assets of the company in liquidation and the court vide order dated. 10.7.1985 directed the Official Liquidator to publish notices inviting offers for the purchase of the assets of the company in liquidation. Later, on the basis of various orders of this court, Official Liquidator published tender notice in one issue of all editions of two Malayalam Dailies and in all the Southern editions of an English Newspaper. In response to the notice, 18 tenders for the purchase of the assets of the company were received by the Official Liquidator on 23.8.1995 with required earnest money deposit of Rs. 2,00,000/-. The details of the said offers are enumerated in report No. 150 by the Official Liquidator. The highest offer was made by the State Bank of India for Rs. 52 lakhs. There was another offer by the FACT for Rs. 26,76,000/-. Since the highest offer was made by the State Bank of India, the Official Liquidator filed report No. 150 seeking permission of this Court to confirm the sale in favour of the State Bank of India.

(2.) At this juncture, application No. 226 of 1995 was filed by the FACT seeking a direction to the Official Liquidator to negotiate with the applicant for the sale of 167.25 cents of land in Sy. Nos. 1037/1, 2 and 3, 1038/2 & 3 1040/3 and 4 and 1539/1 & 2 of Rameswaram Village. According to the applicant the above mentioned property is a part of the land handed over to the applicant company pursuant to the orders of this Court. It was further averred that the said land is highly essential for the beneficial enjoyment of the remaining part of the land. It was stated that the applicant is willing to offer the same price which was offered by the State Bank of India and therefore the applicant prayed that direction may be issued to the Official Liquidator to sell the land to the applicant on the applicant paying the same price which the State Bank of India have quoted for the land.

(3.) An additional affidavit was filed by the applicant stating that applicant is willing to offer Rs. 66.09 lakhs for the properties mentioned above. Therefore, it is prayed by the applicant that the direction may be issued to the Official Liquidator to negotiate me sale of the land between the applicant and the State Bank of India and not to foreclose the applicant from participating in the further sale of the land.