A two-member NCLAT bench, headed by chairman justice SJ Mukhopadhaya, warned banks that they would get ‘zero rupees’, if the process is stalled. Justice Mukhopadhaya said the interest of thousands of home buyers was of prime importance and the matter needed to be resolved, even if there is just one bidder. During the CoC meeting, bankers also proposed that they would take control of Jaypee Infratech and rope in NBCC as a project management consultant (PMC) to complete over 20,000 delayed flats, sources said. The opposition to the revised bid also comes against the backdrop of NBCC, on May 13, 2019, ruling out dilution of certain conditions, including exemption from tax liability, in its revised offer.
Jaypee Infratech, a subsidiary of the Jaypee Group’ flagship firm Jaiprakash Associates Ltd (JAL), is undergoing insolvency proceedings. State-owned NBCC and Suraksha Group are in the race to acquire Jaypee Infratech. JAL has also submitted its plan but the same is not being considered by lenders at this stage. To solicit the support of its home buyers, who have voting rights for approval of any resolution plan under Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, the Jaypee Group chairman invited the flat owners to discuss the proposal submitted by it.
Manoj Gaur, while apologising for the delay in completing the housing projects, said the delay ‘was beyond his control’. “We are victims of circumstances,” he said. Promising to complete and hand over the remaining units, Gaur sought another chance from the home buyers. “We will put Rs 1,500 crores in an escrow account and keep a 100-acre land worth Rs 500 crores earmarked, won’t sell this land. In total we have around Rs 2,000 crores for this,” Jaypee Group’s advisor, Ajeet Kumar said. Additional funds would come from home buyers, as well as the sale of unsold housing units worth Rs 4,000 crores, he added.
“Under Section 12A of the IBC Procedure, we have submitted a proposal (to lenders) in the month of February. The highlights of the proposal are that we will put Rs 1,500 crores in an escrow account which will be monitored by a committee and the entire amount will be used for construction and completion of the houses,” he said. The Jaypee Group had, in April 2018 submitted a Rs 10,000-crore plan before its lenders, to revive Jaypee Infratech, but the same was not accepted. Asked if Jaypee’s proposal was aimed at stalling the bids made by NBCC and Suraksha, Kumar said this was not the intention of the Group. “We have also made a proposal and people will decide. If they find the other two bids more favourable, they can accept that and we won’t have any objection,” he said.
Courtesy/By: Akanksha Singh
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17 May 2019
