Authority: National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, Chennai Bench (Justice N. Seshasayee, Member (Judicial) and Jatindranath Swain, Member (Technical))

Order Date: 20 August 2026

Case Overview

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) at Chennai heard two interconnected appeals filed by Kunaparaju Sudharshan Varma, Suspended Board of Director of Bharat Waterfront Pvt. Ltd. (Corporate Debtor).

In Company Appeal (AT) (CH) (Ins) No. 112/2026, the appellant challenged an order of liquidation passed by the Adjudicating Authority (NCLT) against Bharat Waterfront Pvt. Ltd. The appeal was filed with a delay of 5 days, for which the appellant filed IA No. 348/2026 seeking condonation of delay.

The connected appeal, Company Appeal (AT) (CH) (Ins) No. 399/2023, challenged the order under Section 7 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) admitted by IL & FS Financial Services Ltd. (Financial Creditor). During the resolution process following this admission, the corporate debtor was ordered to be liquidated after the resolution process proved unsuccessful.

All respondents were duly served with notices. Mr. T. Vijayakumar Reddy appeared for Respondent No. 1 (IL & FS Financial Services Ltd.). Respondent No. 2 (Resolution Professional) and Respondent No. 3 (Liquidator) were also served.

The tribunal heard arguments from Ms. Nitya Ahuja for the appellant and Mr. T. Vijayakumar Reddy for Respondent No. 1 regarding the delay condonation application.

Final Outcome

The NCLAT allowed IA No. 348/2026 and condoned the 5-day delay in filing the appeal, satisfied with the reasons stated in paragraph 3 of the affidavit. The appeal (CA (Ins) 112/2026) was directed to be listed for admission.

Regarding the connected appeal (CA (Ins) 399/2023), the tribunal noted that since liquidation had already been ordered, the appellant must choose whether to persist with challenging the Section 7 admission order or instead challenge the liquidation order in the newly filed appeal. Both appeals were listed for further hearing on 09 September 2026.

Topics: Insolvency Appeal, Liquidation Order, Delay Condonation