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High Court of Gujarat · body

2025 DAILYLAW 6959 (GUJ)

OL OF ELB SCHLIFF (INDIA) LTD (IN LIQN) v. THE DY GENERAL MANAGER - IDBI BANK LTD.

OLR/48/2025 · 2025-11-21

Mauna M Bhatt

body2025

Judgment text

Extracted from the PDF above. The PDF is authoritative.

C/OLR/48/2025 ORDER DATED: 21/11/2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD R/OFFICIAL LIQUIDATOR REPORT NO. 48 of 2025 In R/COMPANY APPLICATION NO. 46 of 2021 ========================================================== OL OF ELB SCHLIFF (INDIA) LTD (IN LIQN) Versus THE DY GENERAL MANAGER - IDBI BANK LTD. ========================================================== Appearance: BHOOMI M THAKORE(6237) for the Applicant(s) No. 1 ========================================================== CORAM:HONOURABLE MRS. JUSTICE MAUNA M. BHATT Date : 21/11/2025 ORAL ORDER 1) Heard Ld. advocate Ms. Bhoomi M. Thakore for the Applicant. 1) The present Report has been filed by the Official Liquidator, inter alia, praying for permission to disburse an amount of Rs. 2,08,00,000/- amongst the secured creditors of the company in liquidation, viz. IDBI Bank, ARCIL and IFCI, in the ratio determined by M/s. SDPM & Co., Chartered Accountants, in their report dated 25.03.2023. 2) The company, M/s. ELB Schliff (India) Ltd., was ordered to be provisionally wound up by this Court vide order dated 14.03.2005 and a final winding up order came to be passed on 27.04.2005 in Company Petition No. 4 of 2005, appointing the Official Liquidator attached to this Court as Liquidator of the company and directing him to take possession of the assets and properties of the company. 3) The report indicates that the assets of the company in liquidation were sold and the sale was confirmed in favour of M/s. PMT Machineries Ltd. for a consideration of Rs. 11,05,00,000/- vide order dated 20.02.2007 passed in Official Liquidator’s Report No. 19 of 2007. Page 1 of 8 C/OLR/48/2025 ORDER DATED: 21/11/2025 4) After realisation of sale proceeds, the Official Liquidator issued a public notice on 10.11.2006 inviting claims of workers as well as creditors of the company in liquidation, fixing 30.11.2006 as the last date for submission. Claims were received pursuant thereto and M/s. P.D. Shah & Associates, Chartered Accountants, were appointed for verification and examination of such claims. 5) In the meantime, ARCIL preferred Company Application No. 150 of 2007 seeking disbursement of sale proceeds. By order dated 08.05.2007, this Court directed the Official Liquidator to disburse an amount of Rs. 8,00,00,000/- on an ad-hoc basis amongst the secured creditors in the following manner: Sr. No. Name of the claimant Ad hoc Ratio Amount paid (In Rs.) 1 ARCIL (assignee of ICICI) 45.29% 3,62,32,000/- 2 IDBI BANK 36.18% 2,89,44,000/- 3 IFCI 18.53% 1,48,24,000/- Total 100.00% 8,00,00,000/- 6) Thereafter, IFCI Ltd. preferred Company Application No. 598 of 2008 seeking disbursement of Rs. 3,05,00,000/- plus accrued interest between secured creditors and workers. By order dated 26.12.2008, this Court directed a further ad-hoc disbursement of Rs. 2,00,00,000/- amongst the secured creditors in the following manner: Sr. No. Name of claimant Ad hoc Ratio Amount paid (In Rs.) 1 ARCIL (assignee of ICICI) 45.29% 90,58,000/- 2 IDBI BANK 36.18% 72,36,000/- C/OLR/48/2025 ORDER DATED: 21/11/2025 3 IFCI 18.53% 37,06,000/- Total 100.00% 2,00,00,000/- Thus, a total ad-hoc amount of Rs. 10,00,00,000/- came to be disbursed to the secured creditors. 7) However, the Company Application No. 598 of 2008 filed by IFCI Ltd. was dismissed vide order dated 24-08-2009 by this Court in which it was held that further disbursement should not be granted due to lake of consensus between secured creditors of the company on report of the Chartered Accountants. Therefore, the IFCI had moved O.J. Appeal No. 20 of 2010 against said order dated 24-08-2009. After hearing the said Appeal, the Division Bench of this court vide order dated 27.12.2010 disposed the O.J. Appeal No. 20 of 2010, by observing that it will be open for the appellant-original applicant to submit an appropriate application afresh before the learned Company Court claiming its rights on the basis of the judgment and order passed by the Debts Recovery Tribunal in O.A. No. 121/2008 with a request to decide the final ratio accordingly and consequently to disburse the amount among the secured creditors and as and when such an application is made and the same be considered in accordance with law and on its own merits, without, in any way, being influenced by any of the observations made by the learned Company Court made in the impugned order. C/OLR/48/2025 ORDER DATED: 21/11/2025 8) The Official Liquidator had, in the meantime, received a claim verification report dated 29.01.2009 from M/s. P.D. Shah & Associates, Chartered Accountants. As IFCI and IDBI did not agree with that report, IFCI Ltd. filed Company Application No. 46 of 2021 seeking distribution of the undistributed amount lying with the Official Liquidator amongst the eligible secured creditors having first charge over the assets of the company. By order dated 23.09.2022 passed in Company Application No. 46 of 2021, this Court directed the Official Liquidator to appoint a new Chartered Accountant for re-verification of the claims of the secured creditors and directed the secured creditors to lodge their claims afresh. Pursuant thereto, the Official Liquidator appointed M/s. Sunil Dad & Co., Chartered Accountants (now known as M/s. SDPM & Co.) by letter dated 30.09.2022. 9) M/s. SDPM & Co., Chartered Accountants, submitted their claim verification report dated 25.03.2023. They recorded that they had received claims from IDBI Bank Ltd., ARCIL and IFCI Ltd. and had also considered the workers’ claim as per the earlier Chartered Accountant’s report. The considered claim amounts and ratios are as under: C/OLR/48/2025 ORDER DATED: 21/11/2025 10) The Chartered Accountants noted that a total ad-hoc distribution of Rs. 10,00,00,000/- had already been made from out of the sale proceeds of movable and immovable assets. Based on the considered ratios, they worked out the distributable amount of Rs. 10,00,00,000/- as under: 11) Applying the above ratio, M/s. SDPM & Co. compared the distributable amounts with the actual amounts already disbursed and arrived at the following position: Sr. No. Claimant Name Considered Claim Amount (Rs. In Lacs) Ratio of claim (In %) 1 IDBI 4785.34 46.89 2 ARCIL 2959.93 29.00 3 IFCI 2443.27 23.94 4 Workers 17.00 0.17 Total 10205.54 100.00 Sr. No. Claimant Name Distributable Amount PART-A (In Rs.) Distributable Amount PART-B (In Rs.) Total Distributable Amount (In Rs.) 1 IDBI 4,63,32,233 --- 4,63,32,233 2 ARCIL 2,86,55,039 13,57,500 3,00,12,539 3 IFCI 2,36,55,228 --- 2,36,55,228 Total 9,86,42,500 13,57,500 10,00,00,000 Sr. No. Claimant Name Distributable amount to secured creditors (In Rs.) Distributed amount to secured creditors (In Rs.) Amount to be paid/recover form secured creditors (In Rs.) 1 IDBI 4,63,32,233 3,61,80,000 1,01,52,233 2 ARCIL 3,00,12,539 4,52,90,000 (-1,52,77,461) 3 IFCI 2,36,55,228 1,85,30,000 51,25,228 Total 10,00,00,000 10,00,00,000 C/OLR/48/2025 ORDER DATED: 21/11/2025 12) The Chartered Accountants thus concluded that an amount of Rs. 1,52,77,461/- was recoverable from ARCIL and that amounts of Rs. 1,01,52,233/- and Rs. 51,25,228/- were additionally payable to IDBI Bank Ltd. and IFCI Ltd., respectively. 13) Based on the said report, the Official Liquidator approached this Court. By order dated 28.07.2023 passed in Company Application No. 46 of 2021, this Court directed ARCIL to deposit Rs. 1,52,77,461/- with interest at 8% per annum from 08.05.2007 till the date of deposit with the Official Liquidator. ARCIL accordingly deposited Rs. 1,52,77,461/- together with interest of Rs. 2,05,19,514/-, aggregating to Rs. 3,57,96,975/- with the Official Liquidator. It is recorded that, as per the undertaking and consent, the Official Liquidator thereafter disbursed Rs. 2,37,87,933.80 to IDBI Bank and Rs. 1,20,09,041.20 to IFCI Ltd. out of the said amount of Rs. 3,57,96,975/- in terms of the order dated 28.07.2023. 14) Thereafter, IDBI Bank, by letter dated 25.10.2024, requested that the remaining amount lying with the Official Liquidator be disbursed as per the ratio finalised in the report dated 25.03.2023 of M/s. SDPM & Co. In response, the Official C/OLR/48/2025 ORDER DATED: 21/11/2025 Liquidator issued a letter dated 19.02.2025 to IDBI Bank, IFCI and ARCIL proposing disbursement of Rs. 2,08,00,000/- as per the said ratio and sought their consent. IDBI Bank, IFCI and ARCIL, by letters dated 24.02.2025, 25.03.2025 and 13.06.2025 respectively, conveyed their consent to such proposed disbursement. 15) As on 31.05.2025, a sum of Rs. 2,09,61,676/- is lying in the account of the company in liquidation with the Official Liquidator. The present Report, therefore, proposes disbursement of Rs. 2,08,00,000/- amongst the secured creditors in terms of the ratio determined by M/s. SDPM & Co., Chartered Accountants, as under: Sr. No. Bank Name Claim Lodged Amount (Rs. In Lacs) Considered Claim Amount (Rs. In Lacs) Ratio of claim (In %) Amount Payable (In Rs.) 1 IDBI 4785.34 4785.34 46.97 97,69,760 2 ARCIL 2959.93 2959.93 29.05 60,42,400 3 IFCI 2443.27 2443.27 23.98 49,87,840 Total 10205.54 10205.54 100.00 2,08,00,000 16) In view of the factual background narrated hereinabove, the report of M/s. SDPM & Co., Chartered Accountants dated 25.03.2023, the earlier orders passed by this Court and the specific written consents of all three secured creditors, this Court finds no legal impediment in granting the prayer made in C/OLR/48/2025 ORDER DATED: 21/11/2025 the present Report. 17) Accordingly, the Official Liquidator is permitted to disburse a total sum of Rs. 2,08,00,000/- (Rupees : Two Crore Eight Lakh only) to the secured creditors of the company in liquidation as under: 18) The aforesaid disbursement shall be made subject to each of the above secured creditors filing, before the Official Liquidator, an undertaking to the effect that if it is found that any excess amount has been paid to them, they shall refund the same forthwith together with interest at the prevailing rate to the Official Liquidator. 19) The Official Liquidator is further permitted to encash such Fixed Deposit Receipts, if any, as may be required for the purpose of giving effect to the above disbursement. 20) With the aforesaid directions, Official Liquidator’s Report No. 48 of 2025 stands disposed of accordingly. (MAUNA M. BHATT,J) DIPTI PATEL... Page 8 of 8 Sr. No. Secured Creditors Amount Payable (In Rs.) 1 IDBI 97,69,760 2 ARCIL 60,42,400 3 IFCI 49,87,840 Total 2,08,00,000 Original copy of this order has been signed by the Hon'ble Judge. Digitally signed by: DIPTIBEN PIYUSH PATEL(HC00191), PRINCIPAL PRIVATE SECRETARY, at High Court of Gujarat on 21/11/2025 15:52:41