Authority: National Company Law Appellate Tribunal Principal Bench, New Delhi (Justice Mohd. Faiz Alam Khan, Member (Judicial) and Naresh Salecha, Member (Technical))

Order Date: 27 August 2026

Case Overview

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) heard an application (I.A. No. 4211 of 2026) filed by Vaibhav Mercantile Ltd. seeking condonation of a 17-day delay in filing Company Appeal (AT) (Ins) No. 1072 of 2026. The appeal challenged an order dated 23 April 2026 passed by the National Company Law Tribunal, Mumbai Bench, Court-VI, Special Bench in CP(IB) No. 1416(MB) 2025.

The appellant argued that although the appeal appeared to be filed with a 17-day delay, the actual delay was within the 15-day condonable period permitted under Section 61(2) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) after proper computation excluding holidays. The impugned order was pronounced on 23 April 2026, making 24 April 2026 the commencement date for limitation. The 30th day of limitation fell on 23 May 2026 (4th Saturday) and 24 May 2026 (Sunday), both holidays when NCLAT's office was closed. Applying Section 4 of the Limitation Act, 1963 and Rule 3 of NCLAT Rules, 2016, these two holidays should be excluded from computation, making 25 May 2026 the effective 30th day. The 15-day condonable period would therefore extend until 9 June 2026, and the appeal was e-filed on this date.

Additionally, the appellant contended that though the order was pronounced on 23 April 2026, the detailed order was only uploaded on the NCLT website on 21 May 2026, substantially reducing the time available to review the reasoned order before filing the appeal.

The respondent opposed the application, arguing that Section 61(2) of IBC strictly limits the total permissible period to 45 days (30-day limitation + 15-day condonable period). Relying on Supreme Court precedents including Tata Steel Limited vs. Rajkumar Banerjee and Others (2025) 9 SCC 483, and Assam Urban Water Supply and Sewerage Board versus Subhash Projects and Marketing Limited, the respondent contended that the benefit of Section 4 of the Limitation Act applies only to the prescribed 30-day limitation period, not to the additional 15-day condonable period.

The Tribunal extensively examined relevant legal provisions including Section 61(2) of IBC, Section 4 of the Limitation Act, 1963, and Rule 3 of NCLAT Rules, 2016, along with precedents from the Supreme Court and coordinate benches of NCLAT including BSE Ltd. vs. Mrudula Brodie and Ors (2025) ibclaw.in 144 NCLAT and State Bank of India v. Darwin Platform Infrastructure Ltd. and Ors (2024) ibclaw.in 152 NCLAT.

Final Outcome

The NCLAT allowed the application and condoned the delay in filing the appeal. The Tribunal held that since the 30th day of limitation (23 May 2026) and the succeeding day (24 May 2026) were holidays when the Tribunal was closed, these days must be excluded from computation under Rule 3 of NCLAT Rules. This made 25 May 2026 the effective 30th day, and the 15-day condonable period extended until 9 June 2026. The appeal filed on 9 June 2026 was therefore within the condonable period. The Tribunal also found the explanation for delay (late uploading of detailed order on 21 May 2026) constituted sufficient cause for condonation. The matter was listed for hearing on 9 September 2026 as a fresh case.

Topics: Delay Condonation, IBC Appeals, Limitation Computation