Authority: National Company Law Tribunal, Indore Bench Court No. 1

Order Date: 13 July 2026

Case Overview

This application (IA/352(MP)2026 in TP 100 of 2019) was filed by Mr. Sanjeev Chaudhary, the Liquidator of Advance Nath Agri Chemicals Pvt Ltd, under Rule 11 of the NCLT Rules, 2016. The Liquidator sought permission to condone a significant delay in filing quarterly progress reports for the liquidation process. The Corporate Debtor was admitted into Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) based on an application by an Operational Creditor for a debt of ₹1,60,54,704. As no viable resolution plan was received, the Tribunal approved liquidation on 23 December 2022.

The liquidation process faced substantial challenges from its inception. The Corporate Debtor had no realizable assets, and its suspended management remained absconding and non-cooperative, failing to provide any books of accounts, records, or information. The Stakeholders Consultation Committee (SCC) was largely non-functional; members were frequently unavailable, and on several occasions, only one member attended meetings. One SCC member declined to participate entirely and refused to share any liquidation-related costs. Astec LifeSciences Limited was the predominant operational creditor, holding 99.61% of the voting share.

The Liquidator conducted the entire assignment for a consolidated fee of ₹1,00,000 without engaging any advocate. He issued advertisements in the Business Standard (Indore Edition) in Hindi and English and used the Auction Tiger online platform to conduct e-auctions for the sale of the Corporate Debtor as a going concern and for the sale of assets in blocks. All auctions were unsuccessful. A subsequent SCC meeting on 25 June 2024 advised against incurring further expenses and resolved that no additional advertisements be issued.

The delay in filing progress reports was attributed to the practical difficulties described, coupled with the Liquidator's office relocation from Gwalior to Barakhamba Road, New Delhi, in July 2024, during which case files were inadvertently misplaced and mixed with scrap. The delay for the various quarterly reports ranged from 315 to 685 days, as detailed in a submitted chart.

The Tribunal, while acknowledging the challenging circumstances, noted that the Liquidator's conduct in allowing such a considerable delay was unsatisfactory. It emphasized that a fixed professional fee does not justify handling statutory duties casually and that greater diligence was expected.

Final Outcome

The application was allowed. The delay in placing the liquidation progress reports on record was condoned to bring the pending proceedings to a logical conclusion and prevent stakeholders from suffering. The progress reports were ordered to be taken on record. The application was disposed of.

Topics: Insolvency, Liquidation Process, NCLT Order