The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Thursday issued a notice to the administrator and lenders of the defunct Jet Airways in a petition filed by Punjab National Bank (PNB).
In its plea, the lender has alleged “gross irregularities” on part of the resolution professional (RP) and urged the appellate tribunal to quash the rescue plan for the debt-laden carrier. The move further delays the airline’s revival plans.
The appellate tribunal, admitting the petition, has posted the case for September 21. In its petition, PNB has alleged that the RP slashed the airline’s debt by reducing the value of shares pledged invoked as per the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).
According to PNB, the slashing of the debt by the RP was “arbitrary and illegal”.
When contacted by FE, the RP declined to comment, saying the issue was sub judice. The spokesperson for Jet Airways was not reachable. There was no immediate response to mails sent to PNB.
On June 22, the National Company Law Tribunal’s Mumbai bench approved a joint resolution plan by Kalrock Capital and entrepreneur Murari Lal Jalan to revive the airline.
In October 2020, the bidders had proposed a repayment plan of Rs 1,200 crore to Jet Airways’ financial creditors and employees over a five-year period. The RP had also admitted claims of more than Rs 15,400 crore from financial and operational creditors.
The resolution plan had proposed a 95% haircut to the financial creditors, offering Rs 385 crore for admitted claims of Rs 7,807 crore. The total admitted claims include Rs 1,636 crore by the State Bank of India, Rs 1,084 crore by Yes Bank and Rs 754 crore by PNB.
Jet Airways, a private carrier, was sunk by losses and debt and grounded all its flights in April 2019. The carrier was planning to resume services, after successfully exiting the IBC proceedings, by 2022.