National The Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Tuesday refused to grant an interim stay on Adani Group’s Rs 14,535 crore bid to acquire Jaiprakash Associates Ltd (JAL). Vedanta Group had challenged the NCLT order in which it had approved Adani’s bid. A two-member bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan sought a response from the Committee of Creditors (CoC) of JAL within a week. The next hearing of the case has been fixed for April 10. The bench said, “In view of the seriousness of the matter, there is a need for an early hearing.”
The court sought arguments from all parties
The court has directed all the parties to submit a brief note of their arguments, not exceeding 5 pages, before the next hearing. The Appellate Tribunal clarified that work on the resolution plan will continue for the time being, but it will depend on the final decision of the appeals filed by Vedanta Group. During the hearing, Vedanta’s lawyer argued that it had been declared the highest bidder by the committee of creditors. Vedanta’s bid was worth Rs 16,726 crore, while Adani Enterprises’ bid was Rs 14,535 crore. Vedanta argues that the main objective of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) is to recover ‘maximum value’ for the assets of the debt-ridden company, but the banks have ignored this rule by choosing the low bid (Adani’s bid).
What did the lenders say in defense of their decision?
The lenders defended their decision, saying the process was completely within the rules. Banks argue that merely making a higher bid does not guarantee victory. Adani’s plan was liked because they were offering Rs 6,000 crore in cash and payment within two years, whereas Vedanta’s payment time was as long as 5 years. The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal had on Monday directed Vedanta to make Adani Enterprises also a party in this case, as a unilateral order cannot be passed without hearing their side.
Lenders had chosen Adani’s plan with 89% voting.
Anil Aggarwal-led Vedanta Group was in the race for JAL from the beginning, but in November last year, lenders chose Adani’s plan with 89 percent votes. Allahabad NCLT had given official approval to Adani’s bid on March 17, which has now been challenged by Vedanta in NCLAT. Jaiprakash Associates has large assets in real estate, cement, hotels and power sectors. These include big projects like ‘JAP Greens’ in Greater Noida, ‘Wishtown’ in Noida and ‘International Sports City’ near Jewar Airport. The company has a total outstanding debt of Rs 57,185 crore, due to which it was put into insolvency process in June 2024.