# In the matter of Sundaresh Bhat Liquidator of ABG Shipyard Limited, Company Appeal (AT) (Ins) No. 398 of 2021

> NCLAT judgment dated 2021-09-20. Citation: TCN-2021-NCLAT-00087. The appeal was filed by the Liquidator of ABG Shipyard Limited against an order passed by the…

- **Court:** NCLAT
- **Order date:** 20 Sept 2021
- **Citation:** TCN-2021-NCLAT-00087
- **Category:** IBC
- **Source page:** https://caseease.in/cases/ibc/nclat-new-delhi/sundaresh-bhat-liquidator-of-abg-shipyard-limited-company-appeal-at-ins-no-398-o-acc838b8

## Summary

### Background

The appeal was filed by the Liquidator of ABG Shipyard Limited against an order passed by the Adjudicating Authority (National Company Law Tribunal), Ahmedabad Bench, which declined to give the benefit of a 90-day period to pay the balance sale consideration as per the amended clause 12 of Schedule I of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (Liquidation Process) Regulations, 2016. The Adjudicating Authority relied on a circular issued by the IBBI, stating that the benefit of the amendment could only be taken in matters where the liquidation process commenced on or after 25.07.2019. ICICI Bank Ltd. had filed an application under Section 7 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 against the Corporate Debtor, which was admitted on 01.08.2017. A liquidation

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## Facts

ICICI Bank Ltd. initiated insolvency proceedings against the Corporate Debtor under Section 7 of the IBC, which were admitted on 01.08.2017. A liquidation order was issued on 25.04.2019 due to the failure of resolution. The Appellant, appointed as Liquidator, made four unsuccessful attempts to sell the Corporate Debtor's assets through public auction. The Appellant found the 15-day payment timeframe post-auction to be insufficient. The IBBI amended Schedule I Clause 12 of the Liquidation Regulations on 25.07.2019, extending the payment period to 90 days. The Appellant sought to apply this amendment but was denied by the Adjudicating Authority, which cited an IBBI circular restricting the amendment's applicability to liquidation processes commencing on or after

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## Issues and analysis

### Issue 1: Whether the amended Clause 12 of Schedule I of the Liquidation Regulations, which extends the …

**Ratio:** Procedural laws generally apply retrospectively unless the amending statute expressly

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**Reasoning:** The NCLAT reasoned that the amended Clause 12 is procedural in nature as it relates to

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**Interpretation:** The amendment to Clause 12 was interpreted as a beneficial provision intended

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**Application:** The NCLAT applied the principle that procedural laws apply retrospectively to

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## Parties

- **Judges:** A.I.S. C…; Alok Sriv…
- **Appellants:** Sundaresh…
- **Respondents:** ABG Shipyard…

## Timeline

- **2017-08-01 — Admission of Insolvency…**: Insolvency proceedings against the Corporate Debtor were admitted under Section 7 of the…
- **2019-04-25 — Liquidation…**: A liquidation order was passed as…

## Legal provisions

- [Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, Section 7 — Initiation of corporate insolvency resolution…](https://caseease.in/legal-provisions/insolvency-and-bankruptcy-code-2016/section-7)

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