Latest news with #RamalingamSudhakar
Time of India
21-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
NCLT adjourns Bhushan Power & Steel insolvency case hearing to May 26
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel New Delhi: The National Company Law Tribunal, on Wednesday, deferred the hearing of Bhushan Power and Steel Limited 's (BPSL) insolvency case to May 26. The NCLT sought the assistance of the counsels appearing in the case to implement the Supreme Court's this month, the Supreme Court scrapped JSW Steel 's ₹19,700-crore acquisition of BPSL completed four years ago, citing "gross violation" of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), and ordered the liquidation of the top court has observed violations of norms or processes by key stakeholders - JSW Steel, the committee of creditors, and the resolution that NCLT has to operate within the findings of the SC and its role is limited, NCLT president, Justice Ramalingam Sudhakar, asked the counsels: "How do you want to address this? Are you reviewing this? The decision, he said is very clear. "It (SC) says NCLT, NCLAT, please strictly obey our orders. So, we have to be doubly careful," Sudhakar also posed a question regarding the management of BPSL."Someone has to take control, or there has to be something to safeguard the state of Corporate Debtor?" he asked.
Mint
15-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Bankruptcy resolutions peak in FY25, creditors recover over ₹67,000 crores
New Delhi: Creditors and investors salvaged a record number of 284 companies from bankruptcy in FY25 under provisions of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), as per data from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). This improvement comes as the government filled vacancies in bankruptcy tribunals and the sector's regulator continued refining rules to enhance the efficiency of the corporate turnaround ecosystem. Creditors stand to recover over ₹ 67,000 crore from these transactions in the recently concluded financial year, a 42% increase compared to the amount recoverable from the turnaround of 275 companies achieved in the same period last year, the data showed. This development also comes amid improving outcomes under IBC—the key policy tool for repairing the balance sheets of lenders and corporations, which is a priority for the NDA government that is banking on a fresh cycle of private investments to bolster economic growth and create jobs. According to the data, as of the end of March, there were only three vacant positions in the 63-member tribunal overseeing bankruptcy cases and company law-related matters, marking a significant improvement in strength after a series of retirements. On 4 October 2022, Mint reported that NCLT had only 28 members then. The tribunal had only 43 members as of end of September last year. NCLT president Justice Ramalingam Sudhakar had last year highlighted the need for manpower capacity addition in the tribunal, at the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India's (IBBI) annual day. 'Give me the numbers, I will give you the result,' he said then, Mint reported on 1 October last year. The uptick in successful resolutions under the IBC reflects maturing institutional capacity, growing creditor confidence and the strengthening of IBC jurisprudence, said Yogendra Aldak, Partner at Lakshmikumaran and Sridharan Attorneys. Developments such as the introduction of mediation, pre-packaged insolvency scheme for micro, small and medium enterprises and landmark Supreme Court rulings on personal guarantor liability and on rejection of delayed claims post-corporate insolvency resolution process have laid the groundwork for faster, more efficient resolutions, said Aldak. The amount recoverable from bankruptcy resolutions achieved in FY25 is second only to the ₹ 1.19 trillion reported recoverable from 81 corporate turnaround cases in FY19. That year witnessed the debt resolution of Essar Steel India Ltd. after a joint venture between the world's largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal and Japan's Nippon Steel Corp. acquired the company for ₹ 42,785 crore under IBC proceedings. Karvy Data Management Services Ltd, Era Infra Engineering Ltd, Sks Power Generation (Chhattisgarh) Ltd, Lanco Amarkantak Power Ltd, Coastal Energen Pvt. Ltd and Metalyst Forgings Ltd, are among the companies that have got debt resolution plans cleared by NCLT in FY25, as per data available from Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI), the sector's rule maker and regulator of professionals. In each of these cases, creditors stand to realise more than ₹ 1,000 crore of their dues. In the case of Lanco Amarkantak Power, the realisable value reported by IBBI is ₹ 4,101 crore. Experts also said that persistent litigation challenges such as appeals, interlocutory applications, delayed claims, and even invocation of writ jurisdiction continue to disrupt bankruptcy resolution timelines even after a resolution plan has been approved by the distressed company's committee of creditors. 'To improve outcomes, a targeted approach is required to ensure stricter adjudication timelines, increase in the number of dedicated and technical benches, and faster mechanisms for collation of claims,' said Aldak of Lakshmikumaran and Sridharan Attorneys. 'Going forward, it is essential that the Code evolves in line with commercial realities, enabling a synchronous quantitative and qualitative improvement in resolutions.'
Mint
15-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Bankruptcy resolutions peak in FY25, creditors recover over ₹67,000 crores
New Delhi: Creditors and investors salvaged a record number of 284 companies from bankruptcy in FY25 under provisions of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), as per data from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). This improvement comes as the government filled vacancies in bankruptcy tribunals and the sector's regulator continued refining rules to enhance the efficiency of the corporate turnaround ecosystem. Creditors stand to recover over ₹ 67,000 crore from these transactions in the recently concluded financial year, a 42% increase compared to the amount recoverable from the turnaround of 275 companies achieved in the same period last year, the data showed. This development comes amid improving outcomes under IBC—the key policy tool for repairing the balance sheets of lenders and corporations, which is a priority for the NDA government that is banking on a fresh cycle of private investments to bolster economic growth and create jobs. According to the data, as of the end of March, there were only three vacant positions in the 63-member tribunal overseeing bankruptcy cases and company law-related matters, marking a significant improvement in strength after a series of retirements. On 4 October 2022, Mint reported that NCLT had only 28 members then. The tribunal had only 43 members as of end of September last year. NCLT president Justice Ramalingam Sudhakar had last year highlighted the need for manpower capacity addition in the tribunal, at the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India's (IBBI) annual day. 'Give me the numbers, I will give you the result,' he said then, Mint reported on 1 October last year. The uptick in successful resolutions under the IBC reflects maturing institutional capacity, growing creditor confidence and the strengthening of IBC jurisprudence, said Yogendra Aldak, Partner at Lakshmikumaran and Sridharan Attorneys. Developments such as the introduction of mediation, pre-packaged insolvency scheme for micro, small and medium enterprises and landmark Supreme Court rulings on personal guarantor liability and on rejection of delayed claims post-corporate insolvency resolution process have laid the groundwork for faster, more efficient resolutions, said Aldak. The amount recoverable from bankruptcy resolutions achieved in FY25 is second only to the ₹ 1.19 trillion reported recoverable from 81 corporate turnaround cases in FY19. That year witnessed the debt resolution of Essar Steel India Ltd. after a joint venture between the world's largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal and Japan's Nippon Steel Corp. acquired the company for ₹ 42,785 crore under IBC proceedings. Karvy Data Management Services Ltd, Era Infra Engineering Ltd, Sks Power Generation (Chhattisgarh) Ltd, Lanco Amarkantak Power Ltd, Coastal Energen Pvt. Ltd and Metalyst Forgings Ltd, are among the companies that have got debt resolution plans cleared by NCLT in FY25, as per data available from Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI), the sector's rule maker and regulator of professionals. In each of these cases, creditors stand to realise more than ₹ 1,000 crore of their dues. In the case of Lanco Amarkantak Power, the realisable value reported by IBBI is ₹ 4,101 crore. Experts also said that persistent litigation challenges such as appeals, interlocutory applications, delayed claims, and even invocation of writ jurisdiction continue to disrupt bankruptcy resolution timelines even after a resolution plan has been approved by the distressed company's committee of creditors. 'To improve outcomes, a targeted approach is required to ensure stricter adjudication timelines, increase in the number of dedicated and technical benches, and faster mechanisms for collation of claims,' said Aldak of Lakshmikumaran and Sridharan Attorneys. 'Going forward, it is essential that the Code evolves in line with commercial realities, enabling a synchronous quantitative and qualitative improvement in resolutions.' On Wednesday, NCLT president Sudhakar, during the hearing of the resolution plan for Bhushan Power & Steel Ltd, spoke about the need to increase NCLT's sanctioned strength above its existing strength and add new benches.
Mint
14-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
'Where are the members?' NCLT on Bhushan Steel resolution review
The Supreme Court's unprecedented move to scrap JSW Steel's ₹ 19,700-crore resolution plan for Bhushan Power & Steel Ltd (BPSL) and order its liquidation has shifted the burden back onto the already-understaffed National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), which must now hear the case again. Understaffing at the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) emerged as a key concern on Wednesday during a hearing on the BPSL case. NCLT president Justice Ramalingam Sudhakar raised doubts about the tribunal's capacity to revisit such a complex, large bankruptcy case resolved six years ago, given its limited resources. 'The entire matter has come back to us lock, stock, and barrel,' Justice Sudhakar said. 'So many issues are happening in the tribunal every day. The number of benches needs to be increased. If you want to have valuable judicial time with this pressure, it's very difficult for any member to do that effectively. Even if I have to check a small application filed with all its necessary safeguards, I need more time," he said. "For example, this Bhushan Steel case, I want a special bench just for this. These interlocutory applications (IAs) need to be adjudicated by a special bench, and that takes time."Where are the members?" the NCLT president asked. Justice Sudhakar noted that the existing members are already stretched thin, and that he has been repeatedly pressing the government and even parliament to expand the tribunal's strength. "This is what I've been telling parliament. Please double the number of members. At least this issue can't continue as it is." 'I literally push my members to achieve what we've managed so far.' His remarks came during the hearing at NCLT Delhi Principal Bench, where several BPSL creditors have begun filing fresh claims following the Supreme Court's 2 May ruling quashing the resolution. The NCLT president also pointed to the scale of work handled by NCLT in recent years. 'We have cleared more and more cases every year — 179,270,285 last year alone. The amount is so huge.. And we did that with what? Only 60% of our sanctioned strength. There was no special bench for IBC — it was only for company matters. Who appreciates that?' he asked. Currently, the NCLT has a sanctioned strength of 63 members across 16 benches nationwide. The Supreme Court on 2 May quashed JSW Steel's resolution plan for Bhushan Power & Steel and directed the NCLT to initiate liquidation proceedings—sending the case back to the tribunal, even though the original resolution had been approved by both the NCLT and the Committee of Creditors in 2019. The Union government in March 2025 assigned benches to 21 of the 24 newly-appointed judicial and technical members of the NCLT. These appointments followed persistent calls from the NCLT Bar Association and sharp criticism from the Supreme Court in a November 2024 ruling over large vacancies in the tribunal. India's Economic Survey released in February 2025 highlighted serious delays in the resolution of distressed assets under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), with the average Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) taking 582 days and liquidation processes stretching to an average of 499 days.
