RAMAN KUMAR AGGARWAL Vs. PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Petitioners claim to be erstwhile directors of M/s J.R. Agro Tech Private Limited (hereinafter, 'company'), in respect of which insolvency proceedings were commenced before the National Company Law Tribunal, Chandigarh Bench ('NCLT') and an order was passed by the NCLT on 27th July, 2018, appointing a Resolution Professional ('RP') in respect of the said company. Those proceedings are stated to be pending.

(2.) The Petitioners are aggrieved by two notices, the first being a notice dated 31st January, 2020, informing the Petitioners that the Selection Committee of the Oriental Bank of Commerce ('OBC'), since then merged with the Punjab National Bank (Respondent No. 1), had in its proceedings on 24th July, 2019 decided that the matter pertaining to the declaration of the company's account as 'willful defaulter', in respect of which a show cause notice ('SCN') dated 1st July, 2019 had been issued to the company and the Petitioners, should be placed before the Review Committee of the Board on Willful Defaulters and Non-Cooperative Borrowers for consideration. The letter further states that when the matter was placed before the Review Committee on 17th December, 2019, the Committee decided to give the Petitioners a final opportunity to submit written submissions within 15 days from the date of the letter, before taking a decision in the aforesaid matter.

(3.) The challenge in the present petition is also to the consequential communication dated 30th March, 2020 of OBC informing the Petitioners, as well as the company and co-guarantor Ms. Sudha Aggarwal, that with no representation having been received from the Petitioners, in response to the notice dated 31st January, 2020, the Review Committee at its meeting on 19th March, 2020 had decided that the company's account be approved for "declaration as willful defaulter".