# In the matter of Coastal Projects Ltd., I.A. (IB) No.72,73,74/CTB/2020 connected with CP(IB) No. 593/KB/2017

> NCLT judgment dated 2021-03-02. Citation: TCN-2021-NCLT-02861. The case involves an application filed under Section 33(5) and 60(5) of the Insolvency and…

- **Court:** NCLT
- **Order date:** 2 Mar 2021
- **Citation:** TCN-2021-NCLT-02861
- **Category:** IBC
- **Source page:** https://caseease.in/cases/ibc/nclt-chandigarh/coastal-projects-ltd-ia-ib-no727374ctb2020-connected-with-cpib-no-593kb2017-d05cfb96

## Summary

### Background

The case involves an application filed under Section 33(5) and 60(5) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, and Rule 11 of the National Company Law Tribunal Rules, 2016. The liquidator, Mr. Ravi Shankar Devarakonda, sought approval from the Adjudicating Authority to continue and initiate legal proceedings against the respondent, NPCC, in accordance with the proviso of Section 33(5) of the Code. The liquidator was unable to obtain prior permission before filing writ petitions before the Gauhati High Court due to time constraints and the imminent threat of losing a significant amount of money due to the arbitrary invocation of bank guarantees and forfeiture of the security deposit.

## Facts

State Bank of India is the Financial Creditor. M/s. Coastal Projects Ltd. is the Corporate Debtor undergoing liquidation. Mr. Ravi Shankar Devarakonda is the Liquidator for the Corporate Debtor. The Liquidator filed an application seeking approval to continue legal proceedings against National Projects Construction Corporation Ltd. (NPCC), the respondent. The Liquidator had already filed writ petitions before the Gauhati High Court without obtaining prior approval from the Adjudicating Authority, citing urgency due to the imminent threat of losing a substantial amount of money because of the arbitrary invocation of bank guarantees and forfeiture of security deposit. The Liquidator sought leave to proceed against NPCC pursuant to Clause 76 of the contract by invocation

…

## Issues and analysis

### Issue 1: Whether the Liquidator required prior approval from the Adjudicating Authority before initiating …

**Ratio:** Section 33(5) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, stipulates that after a

…

**Reasoning:** The court acknowledged the requirement for prior approval as per Section 33(5). However,

…

**Interpretation:** Section 33(5) is interpreted to mean that while prior approval is generally

…

**Application:** In this case, the court applied the ratio by considering the Liquidator's

…

## Parties

- **Judges:** Sucharit…; Satya Ranjan…
- **Appellants:** Ravi Shankar…
- **Respondents:** M/s. Coastal…; National Projects…
- **Advocates:** Saswat Kumar…

## Timeline

- **2020-01-16 — Previous…**: The Adjudicating Authority passed an order allowing the ex post facto prayer for the…
- **2021-03-02 — Order Da…**: The Adjudicating Authority allowed the application IA (IB) No. 72/CTB/2020 connected with…

## Legal provisions

- [Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, Section 33(5) — Initiation of liquidation](https://caseease.in/legal-provisions/insolvency-and-bankruptcy-code-2016/section-33)

---

This is a preview. The full structured summary, issues, precedents and source judgment are available on CaseEase - Legal Intelligence Simplified: https://caseease.in/cases/ibc/nclt-chandigarh/coastal-projects-ltd-ia-ib-no727374ctb2020-connected-with-cpib-no-593kb2017-d05cfb96