Icsi Project Report
Icsi Project Report
mTinilr Riqnrr
Ineolvency
INSOLVENCYAND
BANKRUPTCY CODE,2OI6
YACHIKA MENDIRATTA
REG. NO. 240s37243/07 12016
TRAINED UNDER:
MR. R,S. BHATIA
PRACTICI NG COM PANY SECRETARY
c.P. NO.2514
R.. S. Bhatia j"17 [BasementJ, Lajpat Nagar ] ,
Ne\,1' Delhi-110024.
M..4.. F.C.S.
ac,npany Secretary in Practice Ph.011 41078605 Mr 09811113545
PAN. AAFPB5l3OM
CP No - 251,1
CST I'Jo.- 07AAFPB5130M1ZX
Eilaii: bhatia r s@hotmail.com
D€ t.l-11 l
Date 31/1212019
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I, Yachika Mendiratta, a student of the INSTITUTE OF COMPAI{Y
SECRETARIES OF INDIA, am grateful to Mr. R, S. Bhatia, practicing
Company Secretaxy (CP No. 2514) for the confdence bestowed in me
and
enrrusting my project entitled ,,INSOLYENCY AND BANLRUPTCY CODE,
2016".
There were multiple overlapping laws and adjudicating forurns dealing with
financial
failure and insolvency ofcompanies arld individuals in India.
As per that legal framework, provisions relating to insolvency and bankruptcy for
companies could be found in the Sick Industrial Companies (special provisionsl Act, 1985,
the Recovery of Debt Due to Banks and Financial Institutions Act, 1993, the Securitisation
and Reconstruction
of FinancialAssets and Enforcement ofSecu ty Interest Act, 2O0Z and the Companies Act,
201,3.
5. Resolution and jurisdiction vesting with multiple agencies with overlapping powers was
leading to delays and complexities in the process.
To facilitate easy and time bound closure of business in India and to overcome these
challenges, a strong bankruptcy law was required.
7. The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2015 was introduced in the Lok Sabah on 21st
December, 2015 and referred to the Joint Committee on the Insolvency and Bankruptcy
Code,2016. The Committee had presented its recommendations in the modified Bill
based on its suggestions.
Further, the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 was passed by both the Houses of
Parliament and notified in May 2016. Being one ofthe major economic reforms it paves the
way focusing on creditor driven insolvency resolution.
WHAT IS INSOLVENCYAND BANKRUPTCY?
lnsojv.enq/
lnsolvency: the value of th6 nrryr.s ats€r,ls
ttrG waluq of tlt€ <retrt.
. lalait:V.(;trt firrr!
-
llors {rr: aesrrtiwc cqtrity
The term insolyencyis used forboth individuals and organizatioN, For individuals, it is known
as bankruptcyand for corporate it is called corporate insolvency, Both refer to a situation when
aII individual or companyare not able to pay tlle debtin present or near future and the valueof
Insolvenry in this Code is regarded as a "state" where assets are insufficient to meet the
Iiabilities, Ifuntreated, insolvency will lead to bankruptcy for non-corporates and liquidation
ofcorporates.
While illsolvencyis a situation which arises dueto inabilityto payoffthe debts due to insufficient
assets, bankruptcy is a situation wherein application is made to an authority declaring
insolvency and seeking to be declared as bankrupt, which will continue until discharge.
From the above, it is evident that insolvency is a state and bankuptcy is a conclusion. A
bankruptwouldbea conclusive insolventwhereas all insolvencieswillnotlead tobankruptcies.
Typically insolvency situatioN have two options resolution and recoveryE:lisddation.
9l DELHT J>
1- "Bankruptcy'' is a legal proceeding involving a person or business that is
All ofthe debtorJs assets are measured and evaluated, and thenthese assets
In lucid language, if any person or entity is unable to pay off the debts, it
owes to its creditors, ontime oras and when they became due and payable,
There are many enti- ties that can initiate proceedings that will lead to
being able to pay debts as and when they became due and payable is the
leading cause for Liquidation and is the only way that can cause a natural
The Code was passed by parliament in May 2016 and became effective in
December 2016.[8] It aimed to repeal the presidency Towns Insolvency
Act, 1909 and Sick Industrial Companies fspecia] provisions) Repeal Ac;
2003, among otiers.
The first insolvency resolution order under this code was Dassed bv
National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in the case of Synergils-Oooray
Automotive Ltd on 14 August 201.7 and the second resolution plan was
submitted in the case ofProwess International private Limited. The plea
for insolvency was submitted by company on 23 lanuary 2077, The
resoluUon plan was submitted to NCLT within a period of 180 days as
required by the code, and the approval for the same was received on 2
August 2017 from the tribunal. The final order was uDloaded on 1.4
August 2017 on the NCLT website.
1. The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 is intended to strike the right
balance of interests of all stakeholders ofthe business enterprise so that
tlle corporates and otherbusiness entities
enjoy availability ofcredit and at t}le same time the creditor do not have
to bear the losses on account of default.
Z As per the Preamble to the Code, the purpose ofthis Act is as under:-
To fix time periods for execution of tJle law in a time bound manner.
To maximize the value of assets ofinterested Dersons.
To promote entrepreneurship
1. Insolvency Professionals-
(b) The role of the IP encompasses a wide range of functions, which include
adheringto procedure of t]le law, as well as accounting and finance related
functions.
(cl In tJIe resolution process, the insolvency professional verifies the claims of
the creditors, constitutes a creditors committee. runs the debtofs business
during the moratorium pe od and helps the creditors in reaching a
(a) The Code provides for establishment ofa Regulator who will oversee these
enuties and to per- form legislative, executive and quasi- judicial functions
witl respect to the Insolvency Professionals, Insolvenry Professional
Agencies and Information Utilities.
(b) The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of lndia was established on october
1. 2016. The head office of the Board is located at New Delhi.
10
5. AdiudicatingAuthority-
(a) The adiudicating authority for corporate insolvency and liquidation is t]le
NCLT. Appeals arising out ofNCLT orders lie to the National Company Law
(c) Civil Courts have been prohibited to interfere in the matters related witll
application pending before the adiudicating authority.
(e) For individuals and otler persons, tie adjudicating autlority is tie DRT.
Appeals arising out of DRT orders ]ie to the Debt Recovery Appellate
Tribunal and thereafter. to the SuDremeCourt.
7L
I The Code shall apply for insolvency,liquidatio[ voluntary liquidation
or bankruptcy ofthe following entities:
@) Any company incorporated under the Companies Act, 2013 or under any
previous iaw.
(b) Any otier company governed by any special act for tlle dme being in force,
except in so far as the said provision is inconsistent with the provisions ofsuch
Special AcL
(d) Any otler body incorporated under any law for the time
being in force, as the Centml covernment may by notification specit' in this
behalf.
L2
UNDERTHE CODE?
Insolvency Resolution:
The Code outlines separate insolvency resolution processes for individuals.
companies and partnership firms. The process may be iniuated by either
the
debtor or the creditors. A maximum time limit, for completion of the insolvenry
resolution process, has been set for corporates and individuals. For companiei,
the process will have to be completed in 180 days, which may be extended by
90
days, if a majority of the creditors agree. For start-ups
[ot]er than partnership
firmsJ, small companiels and other compairies (with asset less than Rs. 1 croreJ,
resolution process would be completed within 90 days of initiation of request
which may be extended by 45 days.
Insolvenclr regulator:
The Code establishes the Insolvenry and Bankruptry Board of India, to oversee
the insolvency proceedings in the country and regulate the entities registered
under it. The Board will have 10 rnembers, including representatives from the
Ministries of Finance and Law, and the Reserve Bank of India.
13
National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT):
National Company Law Tribunal (NCLTJ would deal with matters relating to
corporate insolvenry, Limited Liability partnership and enforcement ofpersonal
guarantees related to eorporate debtors.
It means debt incurred in exchange for the provision of goods or services (including
employment] or debt in respect of the payment of dues arising under any law for the time
being in force payable to the Central Covernment, any State Government or any regulator;
Creditors:
Creditors includes secured, unsecured creditors including foreign creditors.
T4
Financial Creditor (Section 7): Person to whom 'Financial debt, is owed
and includes a person to whom such debt may have been legally assigned
or transferred in accordance with law (including a person residing outside
Indial. Default may be in respect of Financial debt owed to any Financial
creditor of the corporate debtor and not only the applicant Financial
creditor.
Operational Creditor (Section 9): Person to whom 'Operational debt' is
owed and includes any person to whom such debt may have been legally
assigned or transferred;
Corporate Debtor (Section 10): Shareholder ofthe entity, an individual
who is in charge ofmanaging the overall operations, a person who has the
control, supervision or oversight of the financial affairs of the corporate
debtor
The Code prescribes penalties for false and frivolous petitions.
Default amount for initiatins CIRP
1. Minimum amount of default- Rs. l Lakh
2. Central Government may notiff a higher minimum-default amount not
exceeding Rs. 1 crore
'Creditor in ossession' a
Post the acceptance of the petition by the AA, the board of the
Corporate debtor is suspended and the court appoints an interim
resolution professional. The committee of creditors needs to be
formed and needs to approve the appointment of the interim
resolution professional within 30 days of its appointment by the
AA.
The interim re!olution professional must make every endeavour
to protect and preserve the value ofthe property ofthe corporate
debtor and manage the operations of the corporate debtor as a
going concern
This process is likely to prevent mismanagement of the
Corporate debtor which could be detrimental to the interests of
the creditors, and misappropriation of funds by debtors during
the IRP period.
r,i-:':..
For IsdiYiduals
For CoEpanY/LLP /?roprietorship
cotrc.d/PadnerEhiP
fur (Rdes not Yet
iotifi?d)
E.Eu@*E
16
The Code proposes the following steps to resolve insolvenry:
Initiation:
When a default occurs, the resolution process may be initiated by the
debtor or creditor' The insolvency professional administers the
process. The professional provides financial information ofthe debtor
from the information utilities to the creditor and manage the debtor's
assets. This process lasts for 180 days and any legal action against
the
debtor is prohibited during this period'
Decision to resolve insolvency:
to
A committee consisting of the financial creditors who lent money
The creditors
the debtor will be formed bythe insolvency professional'
committee will take a decision regarding the future ofthe
outstanding
owed to them
debt owed to them. They may choose to revive the debt
the assets of
by, changing the repayment schedule, or sell fliquidate)
taken
ttr" aeUir Io repay the debts owed to them' If a decision is not
in 180 days, the debtor's assets go into liquidation'
Liquidationr
professional
If the debtor goes into liquidation, an insolvency
the sale of the
administers the liquidation ptotttt' Proceeds from
of precedence:
debtor's assets are distributed in the following order
i) insolvenry resolution costs, including the remuneration to the
insolvencY Professional,
collateral, dues
i0 secured creditors, whose loans are backed bY
to workers, other emPIoYees,
iiiJ unsecuredcreditors,
iv) dues to government,
vJ prioritY shareholders and
vi) equitYshareholders.
T7
Conseouence of application under IBC:
1. AA shall either accept or reject the application.
2, If accepted, CIRP commences and the date of admission of application is
called the "Insolvency Commencement Date" ' 180/270 days shall be
counted from this date. (The maximum timeline of 270 days has been
extended to 330 days, inclusive of any litigation, by way oflBC Amendment
Bill,2019)
3, Appointment oflRP. (lRP wiube replaced with/confirmed as RP in the first
meeting ofthe CoC by a majority of 660lo votes.J
4, Moratorium & Public Announcement The AA, by order, declares a
moratorium and causes public announcement of initiation of CIRP and
calls for submission of claims.
Powers of RP
shall be
The management of the affairs of the corporate debtor
vested on the interim resolution professional'
and be
The powers of the board of directors shall be suspended
exercised by the interim resolution professional'
18
The officers and managers ofthe corporate debtor shall report to
the interim resolution professional and provide access to such
documents and records of the corporate debtor as may be
demanded by the interim resolution professional.
Management of the company needs to support the RP in
performing his/her duties.
The interim resolution professional shall have immunity from
criminal prosecution and any other liability for anything done or
omitted to be done in good faith in the discharge ofhis/her duties
as an insolvency resolution professional under the Code.
Moratorium
' The Code provides for an automatic moratorium of 180 days
against any debt recovery actions by the creditors. The
moratorium can only be extended by a further period of 90 days
in exceptional circumstances.
. The oeriod of moratorium would be excluded for computation of
period of limitation.
. The moratorium can give stakeholders time to facilitate
discussions and arrive at a common resolution mechanism
rather than running independent processes.
6i*\;,,
j(oer-nt ): l
PX=-/,j
sty).1
19
Restrictions during Moratorium:
. Institution / continuation of any suits or proceedings against
Corporate Debtor;
. Transferring/encumbering any assets, legal rights or beneficial
interests by Corporate Debtor;
. Any action to recover, foreclose or enforce security interest
against Corporate Debtor;
. Recovery by the owner or lessor of any property occupied or in
possession of CorPorate Debtor.
20
CIRP BROAD TIMELINES
Initiation of liquidation
Application can be made to NCLT for an extension ofg0days T + 270 days
days
(now 330)
Debtor
IRP shall manage the affairs of the Corporate Debtor'
namely:
in lRP. [section 17t1] [a]l
1. Management of affairs of corporate Debtor shall vest
2.PowersoftheBoardofDirectorsofCorporateDebtorstandsuspendedand
vest in IRP. lsection 17(1)(bJ]
Debtor shall report to and cooperate
3. The officers and managers of Corporate
and records' [Section
with the IRP and provide access to all necessary documents
17[1) (c) and Section 19]
of Corporate
4. The financial institutions maintaining accounts
on the instructions of IRP in relation to such accounts [Sectio
2L
5. The IRP shall act and execute in the name and on behalf of the Corporate
Debtor, all deeds, receipts, and other documents. [Section 17(2J(aJ]
6. The IRP shall be responsible for complying with the applicable laws with
respect to the CorPorate Debtor.
7. Protect and preserve the value of assets and manage the operation of
Corporate Debtor as going concern' (Section 20J'
4. Take control & custody of all assets over which Corporate Debtor has
ownershiP rights.
TI
to be completed within
t, Compliance to the timeline of CIRP: Difficult
LaD / 270 daYs.
2.Todealwiththedirectors,promoters'management/KeyManagerial
Person of the Corporate Debtor'
credito
3. To deal with employees, trade unions' operation K7*,,:,
government authorities like ED etc' I( oer-Ht )-l
t7 P}'-,-,1c);
Sector specific issues to the Corporate Debtor and unknown to RP.
). Handling and pursuing the litigations on behalf of Corporate Debtor.
6. Verification of claims, preparing.lM and evaluation matrix for all the
submitted proposals can be very time consuming.
Review ofthe Resolution Plan and approval thereofby CoC and AA.
Committceoflredttor
. IRP shall constitute CoC (Section 21).
. CoC consists of all financial creditors (whether secured or
unsecuredJ, excluding those which are related party of the
Corporate Debtor.
. CoC appoints the RP in its 1st meeting post its formation'
. Meetings of CoC are to be conducted by the IRP and later the RP'
. The voting threshold has been reduced from 7So/oto 5lo/0, except
for certain key decisions requiring 660/o votes, such as:
/ Extension of CIRP period from 180 upto 270 days;
Appointment/substitution of RP;
/ To raise interim finance for Corporate Debtor;
/ To create security interest over the assets of Corporate Debtor;
/ To undertake any related party transaction;
/ To dispose or permit disposal of shares of any shareholder of
Corporate Debtor;
/ To make changes in management of Corporate Debtor or its
subsidiarY.
The resolution professional, after evaluating all claims received
position
against the corporate debtor shall review the financial
oithe corporate debtor and constitute a committee of creditors'
The committee of creditors would consist of Financial creditors
of the Corporate debtor but exclude related party creditors'
The Operational creditors and Corporate debtor will be non-
voting members on the creditors committee and will be invited
to all meetings.
When a corporate debtor does not have any Financial creditors,
the committee of creditors shall be constituted and comprise
such persons to exercise such functions in such a manner as may
be specified by the IB Board.
All material decisions taken by the RP such as the sale of assets,
raising interim funding, creation of security interes! settlement
of legal disputes etc. need to be approved by the creditors
committee. All decisions taken by the creditors committee will be
by way of a maj ority of 75o/o of the Financial creditors by value'
24
r the corporate debtor and its employees, shareholders, creditors
and guarantors and other stakeholders involved in the resolution
olan.
which
' Since it is envisaged that there would be multiple IPAs'
may lead to lack of uniformity in the bye-laws to be
followed by
provides for
different insolvenry professional agencies' the code
model bye- law which wouldbe adopted bv the
" ^ffif
. The model bye law will provides for manner of conducting
examination and minimum standards of professional
competence for members, standards for professional and ethical
conduct, setup of governing board for internal governance and
management of IPA mechanism for redressal of grievances
against members amongst others.
30
Grandfathering ofinsolvency professionals to create capacities in
the interim period
Constituting an examination board to conduct exams for the
licensing of insolvenry professionals.
The Board will also have to set up rules and bye-laws for the orderly
functioning and conduct of the Code. Rules will need to be framed
around:
. Functioning ofthe Adjudication Authority
. Model bye-laws for the conduct of Insolvency Professional
. Guidance notes around the conduct of IRP such as the
presentation and reporting of financial statements, management
of the Company during IRP, summoning a meeting of creditors,
etc.
. Training of IPs
. Creating awareness amongstthe iudicial community' lenders and
other stake holders.
31
1. Constitutional Validity of the IBC
Sw'ss Ribbons Pvt Ltd & Anr. ltnion Of India [(Civil) No'99 of 2018] [Decided
Vs
on lanuary 25, 20191
32
3, Prevailing Nature of IBC
Perusal ofPending Proceeding before High Courts after Declaration of
Moratorium under IBC
Steamline Industries Ltd. Vs. Tecpro Estems Ltd. & Anr.
@299 of 20171 as decided
on December 4. 2017
. The Hon'ble NCLAT stated that the submission ofthe Appellate could not
be accepted in view of section 238 of the IBC which read as: "The
provisions of this Code shall have effect, notwithstanding anything
inconsistent therewith contained in any other law for the time being
in force or any instrument having effect by virtue ofany such law
Therefore, no relief was granted to the Appellant.
. The Hon'ble Court relied on the landmark judgement of ICICI Bank Ltd.
vs. Innoventive lndustries Ltd. in which, the Court had held that the
non-obstante clause in Section 238, which thus overrides all other
Acts.
4.
the IBC
Naveen Luthra & Ors. Vs. BelI Finvest (India) Ltd' & Ors' [Company
AnPeaI (AT) (lnsolvencY) No'
Provision of Section 3 and 4 ofthe Usurious Loans Act, 1918 are not
applicable to the proceedings under Section 7 or 9 ofthe IBC'
Thus the petition filed by the Financial Creditor cannot be dismissed
on the aliegation of charging of usurious and extortionate penal
interest
62)
w
(AT)(lnsolvencv) No..623 of 20181 as decided on November 13' 2078
. Therefore the pendenry ofcase under section 138 of NI Act will not
prevent an operationtl creditor from instituting proceedings under the
Code.
i( oernt 1;
34
7. Whether Adiudicating Authoriw has iurisdiction to
decide the legality of a foreign decree
Holdings L.L.C &Ors. Vs' Francorp Advisors PvL Ltd. [Company
IJsha
Appeal (AT) (lnsolvency) No. 44 of 20181 as decided on November 30,
2018.
proceedings
B.K. Educational Services Privatg Limited Vs' Parag Gupta &
Associqtes [Civil Appeal No.23988 of2017] as decided
on October 17'
2018
. Hon'ble Supreme Court of lndia has held that the Limitation Act'
9 of
1963will apply to applications that are made under S' 7 and S'
the lnsolvenry and Bankruptry Code, 20L6, on and from the
.o..n"n."-unt of IBC on 01.12.2016, having retrospective effect'
. Hon'ble Supreme Courthas through this judgment cl'rifiedthat IBC
proceedings cannot be initiated based on time barred claims'
. Sinc" tt e Limitation Act is applicable to applications
filed under
the
SJons z and 9 of IBC from the inception of IBC' Article 137 of
Act
iimitation Act gets attracted. Article 137 of the Limitation
for
provia"s tt e pe.iod of limitation in case of "any other application
years
iihi.h no puiiod of limitation is provided elsewhere" as three
f.o- ,ft" iime when the right to apply accrues' "The right to sue"'
therefore, accrues when a default occurs'
. Ifthe defaulthas occurred overthree years priorto the dateoffiling
under
oi^"ppfn"r"n under lBC, the application would be barred the
eiriit" rgz of rlt" Limitation Act, except in those cases where'.in to
f;;;; ,lt" case, Section 5 of the Limitation Act may be applied
"f
condone the delay in filing such application' B
9, Whether the time limit for initiation and comDletion of
lnsolvencv resolution nrocess under section 7(5). section 9(51
or section 1o[4] of the Code is mandatory?
Surendra Trading Company Vs. luggilal Kqmalpat lute Mills Co' Ltd. &
Ors, [Civil Appeal No. 8400 of 2017] as decided on September 79, 2017
The Hon'ble Supreme Court observed that the iudgments relied upon
by NCLAT and the principle contained therein applied while deciding
that period of 14 days within which the AA has to pass the order is not
mandatory but directory in nature and would equally apply while
interpreting proviso to sub- section (5J of Section 7, Section 9 or
sub-section (4J ofSection 10 as well and therefore held that the time of
7 days prescribed in the Code for removal ofdefects by the applicant as
directory.
38 Kffif
Kr\-1'
$r= is
relevant. Accordingly, RP is obliged to accept the claim under
corporate guarantee, whether invoked or not.
expression of Interest'
Briltiant Alloys Private Limited Vs. Mr. S' Raiagopal & ors'
(Petitions for Special Leave to Appeal (Q Nos' 31557/2078) as
decided on December 74, 2018'
Hon'ble Supreme Court held that:
. The withdrawal of CIRP was not allowed, though agreed to by the
operational
corporate debtor as well as the financial creditor andthe
.r.di o., Regulation 30A, Insolvency and Bankruptry Board of
",
India (lnsolvenry Resolution Process for Corporate Persons)
be permitted after
Regulaiions, 2016 states that withdrawal cannot
Regulation has to
issue of invitation for expression of interest' This
be read along with Section 12A which contains
no such stipulation'
. However, this stipulation can only be construed
as directory
depending on the facts of each case'
39
16.
expression of Interest.
2078.
40
. 42olo of firms taken to the bankruptcy tribunals belonged to the
manufacturing sector:
Conclusion
Overall this legislation is a huge step towards the ease ofdoing
business in India and has the potential to bring business
practices in India closer to more developed markets over the
long term.
4T