Kotak Mahindra Bank moves NCLT against BILT unit

MUMBAI: Kotak Mahindra Bank has approached the dedicated bankruptcy court against Ballarpur Industries Ltd subsidiary – BILT Graphic Paper Products – for default of Rs 218 crore. The company owes about Rs 6,000 crore to its lenders.

BILT Graphic was on the so-called second list of 29 defaulting companies of RBI, recommending that these firms be referred for resolution through the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

The Mumbai bench of NCLT, presided over by VP Singh and Ravikumar Duraisamy, has adjourned the admission of the company under IBC to May 5. “The respondent (BILT Graphic) can file its response during that time,” it added.

Email queries to Kotak Mahindra Bank as well as BILT Graphics were unanswered till the time of going to Press.

This is second insolvency plea filed against BILT Graphic Paper.

In February 2018, IDBI Bank had approached National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). RBI had directed IDBI Bank to refer BILT Graphic to the bankruptcy court after the regulator rejected its debt recast package as only 70% of the lenders had signed it.

However, in March 2018, the company challenged the RBI’s directive in Delhi High Court, which ordered the lender to maintain status quo at NCLT. Later, the company moved the SC, where the case is pending.

“Post the SC judgment on the RBI circular... in all the cases where strategic debt restructuring (SDR) or corporate debt restructuring (CDR) proposals were pending, the previous circulars and schemes of CDR and SDR are now revived,” said Ashish Pyasi, an advocate with Dhir & Dhir Associates.