SC orders swift completion of insolvency proceedings of Jaypee Infratech

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday ordered swift completion of Jaypee Infratech’s insolvency proceedings, as it asked the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Delhi, to decide the case “preferably within two months”.

“This application is disposed of with a direction to the adjudicating authority (NCLT) to expeditiously dispose of the proceedings concerning the resolution plan of Jaypee Infratech Ltd (JIL), preferably within two months of receipt of this order. Let this order be transmitted to the adjudicating authority through email for information and necessary action,” said the bench of justices AM Khanwilkar and CT Ravikumar.

The bench was hearing a plea filed by homebuyers of the Jaypee Kensington Boulevard project in Noida. More than 20,000 flats were yet to be completed by the JIL when the insolvency proceedings began for the real estate firm in August 2017.

Appearing for the homebuyers, lawyer Shashank Manish argued that repeated delays in the insolvency process are adversely affecting the rights of homebuyers. The lawyer referred to the Supreme Court judgment in March this year, directing for expeditious completion of the insolvency proceedings.

On March 24, the court had remanded the case back to NCLT for fresh voting, and extended the timeline for completion of the corporate insolvency process by 45 days. In June, the resolution plan of Suraksha Realty and state-owned National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC) were put to vote before the lenders, who approved the former’s plan by an overwhelming majority.

After the lenders’ nod, the resolution professional moved the NCLT on July 7, seeking official approval and implementation of the plan. However, the

NCLT is yet to put its stamp of approval on the resolution plan, compelling the homebuyers to approach the apex court with a fresh plea.

Having invested their life savings in the project, homebuyers submitted that the NCLT is acting in a casual manner and said that they have suffered for long to get a house.

They claimed that the already existing structures of the unfinished towers are getting weakened and losing structural integrity owing to the weather conditions, adding that the condition of existing structures will only deteriorate with passage of time.