# In the matter of Gammon India Limited

> NCLT judgment dated 2023-11-09. Citation: TCN-2023-NCLT-00823. The case involves an application filed by Mr. Ajay Kumar Krushna Pradhan, an operational…

- **Court:** NCLT
- **Order date:** 9 Nov 2023
- **Citation:** TCN-2023-NCLT-00823
- **Category:** IBC
- **Source page:** https://caseease.in/cases/ibc/nclt-division-bench-court-i-chenn/gammon-india-limited-988f64e3

## Summary

### Background

The case involves an application filed by Mr. Ajay Kumar Krushna Pradhan, an operational creditor, against Gammon India Limited, the corporate debtor, under Section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016. The operational creditor sought to initiate the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) based on an alleged default of INR 15,26,964. The operational creditor claimed that the corporate debtor failed to pay for the labor/work force supplied for the Chennai Metro Rail Project. The corporate debtor denied the debt and raised objections regarding the validity of the demand notice and the authenticity of the balance confirmation letter submitted by the operational creditor.

## Facts

Mr. Ajay Kumar Krushna Pradhan, an individual civil contractor and labor supplier (Operational Creditor), filed a petition against Gammon India Limited (Corporate Debtor), a public limited company engaged in civil engineering, design, and construction, under Section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016. The Operational Creditor claimed a default of INR 15,26,964, which included a principal amount of INR 11,88,299 outstanding as of 08/11/2015, plus interest calculated at 18% p.a. from 08/11/2015 to 07/06/2017. The debt allegedly arose from work done by the Operational Creditor for the Corporate Debtor's Chennai Metro Rail Project. The Corporate Debtor retained 5% of the amount towards retention money. The Corporate Debtor made a part payment of INR 81,000,

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## Issues and analysis

### Issue 1: Whether the Operational Creditor has established the existence of an operational debt and its …

**Ratio:** The existence of an operational debt must be proven with sufficient evidence, including

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**Reasoning:** The court found that the Operational Creditor had not placed sufficient evidence on

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**Interpretation:** The court interpreted that the burden of proof lies on the Operational Creditor

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**Application:** In this case, the Operational Creditor failed to provide sufficient evidence to

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## Parties

- **Judges:** ANIL RAJ C…; Kuldip Kumar…
- **Appellants:** Ajay Kumar…
- **Respondents:** Gammon India…

## Timeline

- **2015-07-13 — Contract Term…**: The Corporate Debtor's contract with…
- **2015-09-29 — Balance Confirmation…**: The Corporate Debtor allegedly issued an…

## Legal provisions

- [Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, Section 9 — Application for initiation of corporate insolvency…](https://caseease.in/legal-provisions/insolvency-and-bankruptcy-code-2016/section-9)

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