JAGDISHCHANDRA MANSUKHANI AND ORS Vs. MAN INDUSTRIES LIMITED

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Initially, a requisite Form was submitted on 07.03.2017 wherein under the head of Particulars of "Operational Debt" an amount of outstanding Debt was stated to be Rs. 1,64,23,918/-. Inadvertently under the head Corporate Debtor the name of the Company was not mentioned. The Petitioner thought it proper to correct certain mistakes hence the said form was revised and the corrected revised form was submitted on 07.08.2017. According to this revised Form, the "Operational Creditors" were stated to be Jagdishchandra Mansukhani, Priyal Mansukhani, Anita Mansukhani, Jagdish Mansukhani HUF, JPA Solutions Private Limited, Man Tubinox Limited (Formerly known as Man Steel and Power Limited).

(2.) Under the head "Particulars of Corporate Debtor" the name of the Debtor is Man Industries (India) Limited, Man House, Vile Parle, Mumbai. Further, under the head 'Particulars of Operational Debt", the narration is "Total Dividend Amount Rs. 1,58,27,061/-payable by Man Industries (India) Limited as on date of declaration of dividend i.e. 28.12.2015 along with interest @ 18% p.a.". The bifurcation as per the claimants is as under:-

(3.) From the side of the Petitioner, Learned Counsel has informed that the claim was made as "Operational Debt" due to the reason that the non-payment of dividend was in the nature of "Goods" as defined under the Sales of Goods Act, 1930, means "every kind of moveable property other than actionable claim and money, and includes stock and shares". He has further mentioned that in the said Act a definition of "Insolvent" is also provided according to which "a person is said to be "Insolvent" who has ceased to pay his debts in the ordinary course of business, or cannot pay his debts as they become due, whether he has committed an act of insolvency or not;" Learned Counsel has also referred the clauses of the Report of Bankruptcy Law Reform Committee, according to which "Operational Creditors" are those whose liability from the entity comes from a transaction on operations.