Shabbir Hussain Vs Bank of Maharashtra (DRAT Allahabad)
The appeal was filed under Section 20 of the Recovery of Debts and Bankruptcy Act, 1993 against an interim order dated 15.04.2024, by which the Debts Recovery Tribunal rejected the appellants’ stay application. The appellants claimed to be tenants in possession of the disputed property for over 35 years and challenged the Recovery Officer’s direction to hand over possession of the property to a receiver in execution of a recovery certificate issued in favour of the bank.
The bank had granted financial assistance to a borrower, who created an equitable mortgage over the property by depositing title deeds in 2004. Upon default, the bank initiated recovery proceedings, which culminated in a decree in 2011 for over ₹24.93 crore and issuance of a recovery certificate. The Recovery Officer subsequently ordered delivery of possession of the mortgaged property. The appellants’ challenge to this order and their request for interim protection were rejected by the Tribunal below, leading to the present appeal.
The appellants argued that the impugned order violated earlier status quo directions passed by the Appellate Tribunal and that the Recovery Officer and other respondents proceeded to take physical possession despite those orders. They relied on rent receipts to assert long-standing tenancy and sought setting aside of the interim order.
