GARG & CO. PARTNERSHIP FIRM Vs. UCO BANK

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Case has been heard through video conferencing on account of COVID-19 Pandemic.

(2.) Petitioners have filed this writ petition challenging the action of respondent No.1 declaring their bank account relating to cash credit limit as Non-Perfoming Assets (in short 'NPA') on 3/6/2020, which was communicated to the petitioners vide impugned notices dtd. 17/7/2020 (Annexure P-6 colly) under Sec. 13(2) of Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002 (in short 'SARFAESI Act') and notices dtd. 1/10/2020 (Annexure P-10 colly) issued under Sec. 13(4) of the SARFAESI Act. The petitioners also seek a direction to the respondents to implement Reserve Bank of India's circulars dtd. 27/3/2020 (Annexure P-2), 17/4/2020 (Annexure P-3) and 23/5/2020 (Annexure P-4) and to restrain the respondents from taking the physical possession of the secured assets.

(3.) The case of the petitioners as pleaded in the writ petition is that petitioner No.1 is the firm and it availed cash credit limit of Rs.14.00 crore from respondent No.1-Bank vide sanction letter dtd. 10/1/2019. The petitioners have been making repayments in time as per the schedule. The cash credit account of the firm was standard as on 29/2/2020. During the period of lock-down it was illegally declared NPA on 3/6/2020 by respondent No.1- Bank in violation of the circulars (Annexures P-2 to P-4), issued by Reserve Bank of India (in short 'RBI'). The petitioners came to know about the same, when they received impugned notices (Annexure P-6 colly.) issued under Sec. 13(2) of SARFAESI Act. The respondent No.1-Bank further issued notices under Sec. 13(4) of SARFAESI Act (Annexure P-10 colly.) against the provisions of law.