The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Wednesday issued a notice to Reliance Communications (RCom) over a petition filed by Manipal Technologies. The Karnataka-based firm moved the appellate tribunal after the Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) dismissed its insolvency plea against RCom over default of Rs 2.74 crore. Manipal Technologies has said RCom failed to pay the company for biometric fingerprint scanners supplied by it in 2016. Manipal also said RCom claimed the invoices were raised in the name of Hewlett Packard Financial Services India and not RCom. RCom’s counsel informed the court that since invoices were not raised against RCom, there was no obligation on the company to make payment towards those bills, and therefore, the petition was liable to be dismissed. The appellate tribunal will hear the case on December 4.
In a statement to the stock exchanges on Wednesday, RCom said an application under Section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) had earlier been filed by Manipal Technologies (MTL) for dues of Rs 2.74 crore only. “The said application was dismissed by the honourable Company Law Tribunal, Mumbai Bench, on 14 September 2017,” it said. The statement added that the company has not received any notice from the NCLAT. “Upon receipt of any such notice, the company will contest the said application before the appropriate authority,” RCom said.
The telco is also contesting an insolvency petition by Ericsson India — an operational creditor — filed in September against the company and its subsidiaries – Reliance Infratel and Reliance Telecom. RCom and its subsidiaries owe the telecom equipment vendor Rs 1,156 crore. Meanwhile, Tech Mahindra recently withdrew its insolvency petition against RCom citing ongoing settlement talks. Last month, Tech Mahindra had filed the petition with the Mumbai bench of the NCLT seeking dues of Rs 8.2 crore from the telco.