# In the matter of Punjab National  Bank Vs. Amrit Hatcheries Private Limited & Ors.

> SC judgment dated 2024-03-22. Citation: TCN-2024-SC-00083. The appeal concerns whether immovable property, auctioned by the appellant bank under the SARFAESI…

- **Court:** SC
- **Order date:** 22 Mar 2024
- **Citation:** TCN-2024-SC-00083
- **Category:** IBC
- **Source page:** https://caseease.in/cases/ibc/supreme-court-of-india/punjab-national-bank-vs-amrit-hatcheries-private-limited-ors-bc264943

## Summary

### Background

The appeal concerns whether immovable property, auctioned by the appellant bank under the SARFAESI Act, can be excluded from the moratorium under Section 14 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016. The corporate debtor, Amrit Hatcheries Pvt. Ltd., faced SARFAESI proceedings initiated on 2017-07-19. An auction sale notice was issued on 2019-07-27, and the auction was conducted on 2019-08-17. The bank claims the sale was confirmed on 2019-08-19. However, IBC proceedings commenced on 2019-08-20 at the instance of an operational creditor, and a moratorium was declared.

## Facts

Punjab National Bank (PNB) initiated SARFAESI proceedings against Amrit Hatcheries Private Limited due to loan default. PNB conducted an auction of the company's immovable property located in Bankura, West Bengal. The auction sale notice was issued on 2019-07-27, and the auction was conducted on 2019-08-17. PNB claims the sale was confirmed on 2019-08-19. An operational creditor initiated insolvency proceedings against Amrit Hatcheries under Section 9 of the IBC, which were admitted on 2019-08-20. A moratorium was imposed under Section 14 of the IBC. The NCLT ordered the property to be handed over to the liquidator, which was upheld by the NCLAT. The full payment as per SARFAESI auction sale certificate was issued in favour of the auction purchaser by the appellant

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## Issues and analysis

### Issue 1: Whether certain immovable property, auctioned by the appellant bank under the SARFAESI Act, can be …

**Ratio:** The court did not explicitly state a ratio but implied that the IBC moratorium takes

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**Reasoning:** The court reasoned that since the property was already in the hands of the liquidator due

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**Interpretation:** The court's decision suggests a preference for the IBC process when there is a

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**Application:** In this specific case, because the IBC proceedings were initiated shortly after

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## Parties

- **Judges:** ANIRUDDHA…; VIKRAM…
- **Appellants:** Punjab National…
- **Respondents:** AMRIT HATCHERIES…

## Timeline

- **2017-07-19 — SARFAESI Proceedings…**: Punjab National Bank initiated SARFAESI proceedings against Amrit Hatcheries Private…
- **2019-07-27 — Auction Sale Notice…**: Auction sale notice was issued for the…

## Legal provisions

- [Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, Section 14 — Moratorium](https://caseease.in/legal-provisions/insolvency-and-bankruptcy-code-2016/section-14)

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