FICOM ORGANICS LTD. Vs. LAFFANS PETROCHEMICALS LTD.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this petition under Sections 433 and 434 of the Companies Act, 1956 (hereinafter 'the Act'), petitioner-Ficom Organics Ltd. (hereinafter 'the petitioner') has prayed that the respondent-company-Laffans Petrochemicals Ltd. ('the respondent/the respondent-company') be wound up on the ground that the respondent has not paid the petitioner a sum of Rs. 16,27,433.15. Together with further interest thereon at 24 per cent per annum despite statutory notice dated 14th February, 1997 served on the respondent.

(2.) The learned counsel for the parties have addressed the court at length on questions of fact as well as questions of law. Ordinarily, even pure questions of law are required to be decided in the fact situation of a particular case and, therefore, the court would have proceeded to narrate the facts of the case and the contentions of the rival parties both on questions of fact and questions of law and the court would have thereafter proceeded to deal with the same. However, Mr. A S Vakil for the respondent-company has raised an important question of law which arises in a number of company petitions and, therefore, the court has thought it fit to set out the legal perspective with which the court proposes to examine the questions of fact arising in the present case. Statutory provisions

(3.) For winding up petitions on the ground that the company has paid its debt to the petitioner-creditor, the following statutory provisions are relevant :