The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has ordered a status quo on Sarda Energy & Minerals Ltd (SEML)’s bid to take over SKS Power Ltd. This decision comes in response to SEML’s plea against a lower court’s order, which had asked lenders to reconsider their decision to declare SEML as the winning bidder.
In its application, SEML has raised concerns about the violation of principles of natural justice in the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) order. Senior advocates appearing for Sarda argued that the adjudicating authority had gone beyond its jurisdiction.
The bench has asked all respondents, including losing bidder Torrent Power, the resolution professional (RP) Ashish Rathi, and the committee of creditors (CoC), to reply within two weeks. They have also been given one more week to file rejoinders. The next date of hearing is scheduled for November 24.
SEML’s challenge to the NCLT order was reported earlier this month. The plea argues that the court erred in questioning the wisdom of the CoC and has sought a direction to the NCLT to consider the plans in their current form.
SEML was declared the winning bidder, beating Torrent, Vantage, and Jindal. The company owes Rs 1,890 crore to Bank of Baroda and State Bank of India (SBI). The SKS Power Generation Ltd plant is in high demand as it comes with a rare working power plant and a 25-year fuel agreement.
