The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) in Chennai will hear Byju’s appeal against insolvency proceedings on July 29.On Tuesday, Senior Advocate Pramod Nair, representing Byju’s parent company, Think and Learn, made an urgent mention before the NCLAT bench comprising judicial member Sharad Kumar Sharma and technical member Jatindranath Swain. Nair emphasised the urgency, citing the need to pay salaries to the employees.
The NCLAT’s decision to list the matter comes after the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) Bengaluru admitted an insolvency plea filed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on July 16. The cricket body’s claim stems from unpaid dues of ₹158 crore related to sponsorship rights.By admitting BCCI’s plea, the NCLT triggered the corporate insolvency resolution process under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) for Think and Learn.
As mandated under the IBC, the NCLT appointed a resolution professional, Pankaj Srivastava, to manage all affairs of the company in the interim.The edtech firm initially approached the Karnataka High Court but subsequently withdrew its petition to appeal at the NCLAT. When questioned about this move, Nair urged for an early hearing, which the bench agreed to.This latest development follows a series of financial and legal challenges for Byju’s.
The BCCI’s claim represents the largest among Byju’s creditors, but several other companies have also raised substantial claims against the ed-tech firm. Oppo is seeking around ₹13 crore. Surfer Technologies is seeking over ₹2 crore, while Cogent E Services has filed for more than ₹6 crore. McGraw Hill Education India and iEnergizer Services have claimed approximately ₹1.75 crore and ₹13 crore, respectively.
The total amount due to Byju’s creditors exceeds ₹200 crore, according to sources.In a parallel legal battle, the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has moved the Karnataka High Court in a case that will be heard on July 25. In this case, QIA has sought to compel Byju Raveendran to disclose his personal assets and prevent him from selling, pledging or transferring these assets. The fund is attempting to claim personal assets up to $235.19 million from Raveendran.The Qatar fund has previously made a series of investments in Byju’s, beginning in 2019 and then again in 2022. Additionally, QIA provided a $250 million loan to Raveendran in March 2022. In total, QIA had invested around $250 million in Byju’s in 2019 and 2022, bringing their total exposure to approximately $735 million, including the personal loan to Raveendran.