# In the matter of Akbar Travels of India Private Limited vs. Ritco Travels & Tours Private Limited

> NCLAT judgment dated 2024-04-03. Citation: TCN-2024-NCLAT-00548. Akbar Travels of India Private Limited filed an appeal against the Impugned Order dated…

- **Court:** NCLAT
- **Order date:** 3 Apr 2024
- **Citation:** TCN-2024-NCLAT-00548
- **Category:** IBC
- **Source page:** https://caseease.in/cases/ibc/nclat-new-delhi/akbar-travels-of-india-private-limited-vs-ritco-travels-tours-private-limited-5d8bc0f9

## Summary

### Background

Akbar Travels of India Private Limited filed an appeal against the Impugned Order dated 30.11.2023 passed by the National Company Law Tribunal, Jaipur Bench, which dismissed their application under Section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). The dispute arose from transactions involving the booking of airline tickets for M/s Elumatec UK Limited, a client of Ritco Travels & Tours Private Limited. Akbar Travels processed and issued these tickets based on credit card payments. When the payments were disputed, resulting in Agency Debit Memos (ADMs) from the airlines, Akbar Travels sought payment from Ritco Travels, who denied liability, claiming they acted only as a referral agent. Akbar Travels then initiated insolvency proceedings against Ritco Travels,

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## Facts

In April 2017, Ritco Travels & Tours Private Limited (Respondent), an international travel agent, requested Akbar Travels of India Private Limited (Appellant) to process and issue 'Sold Outside Ticketed Outside' (SOTO) tickets for their clients on credit card basis. The Appellant processed and issued air tickets worth Rs. 1,25,87,533/- in the name of the Respondent. The Respondent assured the Appellant of full responsibility for any debit notes issued against these transactions between 04.04.2017 and 13.04.2017. On 17.04.2017, the Appellant received emails from Emirates Airlines about 'charge back' intimation, and 37 Agency Debit Memos (ADMs) were issued for Rs. 46,96,835/- due to fraudulent credit card transactions. The Appellant informed the Respondent and

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## Issues and analysis

### Issue 1: Whether the Appellant and Respondent have a relationship of Corporate Debtor and Operational …

**Ratio:** An 'operational debt' means a claim in respect of the provision of goods or services. An

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**Reasoning:** The Tribunal considered the definition of 'operational debt' and 'operational creditor'

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**Interpretation:** The Tribunal interpreted the emails as evidence that the Respondent was

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**Application:** Based on the emails and the Respondent's undertaking, the Tribunal concluded

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## Parties

- **Judges:** Ashok Bh…; Barun M…; +1 more
- **Appellants:** Akbar Travels of…
- **Respondents:** RITCO Travels &…

## Timeline

- **2017-04-01 — Respondent requested Appellant to issue SOTO…**: Ritco Travels requested Akbar Travels to process and issue SOTO tickets for their clients…
- **2017-04-04 — Transactions…**: Transactions for the booking of tickets referred to by the Respondent were accepted by…

## Legal provisions

- [Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, Section 61(1) — Appeals and Appellate Authority](https://caseease.in/legal-provisions/insolvency-and-bankruptcy-code-2016/section-61)

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