Shifting the entire blame on Resolution Professional on grounds of non-performance of duty and making him the scapegoat does not appear to be justified – Shri Guru Containers Vs. Jitendra Palande – NCLAT New Delhi
NCLAT held that though the scope of CIRP related work became limited and restricted by the fact that progress got stonewalled due to lack of flow of information and lack of claims, diligence on the part of the IRP in proceeding with the CIRP cannot be found to be wanting. Shifting the entire blame on the IRP on grounds of non-performance of duty and making him the scapegoat does not appear to be justified. It is equally important for the creditors to play a catalytic role in the insolvency resolution process given the present regime of creditor-driven IBC. The rigours of similar standards of discipline should also apply on the creditors. This is clearly a case where the CIRP process was being hindered due to want of cooperation and participation from the creditors. The conduct of the Operational Creditor in the present case is deprecatory in that once the CIRP process had commenced, the Operational Creditor went into a sleeping mode. This position has been further aggravated by the fact that it was the Appellant/Operational Creditor who had triggered this judicial process and then abdicated himself from all responsibilities. That the Operational Creditor did not seem interested in resolution of the Corporate Debtor is evident from the fact that till date no claim has been filed with the IRP.
