RAMESH CHANDRA BARDIA Vs. STATE BANK OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Managing Directors/Personal Guarantors of EMC Limited, a company registered under the Companies Act, 2013 have preferred the present writ petitions, all against a Wilful Defaulter Identification Committee (IC) order dated February 24, 2020, whereby the petitioners were identified as Wilful Defaulters, and a Review Committee (RC) order confirming the same, communicated on December 28, 2020.

(2.) The EMC Limited (for short, "the company"), as the principal borrower, availed of a loan from a consortium of banks, of which the State Bank of India was the lead bank. On an application of an operational creditor under Sec. 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (in brief, "the IBC"), a Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) started on November 12, 2018. The committee of creditors consisted of all the consortium banks. A resolution plan was approved by the committee of creditors and sanctioned by the Adjudicating Authority (NCLT, Kolkata Bench) on October 21, 2019.

(3.) On February 8, 2019, the IC issued a show cause notice based on the audited balance sheet of the company for the financial year 2016-17, to which a representation was made by the petitioners. The IC, by its order dated February 24, 2020, declared the petitioners to be wilful defaulters. The petitioners filed a representation against the IC order before the RC which passed its order, affirming the order of the IC, on July 8, 2020 and communicated the same to the petitioners on December 28, 2020.