ICICI Bank Vs Maharana Pratap Education Center (DRAT Allahabad)
The appeal before the Debts Recovery Appellate Tribunal (DRAT), Allahabad, was filed under Section 20 of the Recovery of Debts and Bankruptcy Act, 1993, challenging an order dated 20 June 2019 passed in an appeal under Section 30 of the Act. The dispute arose from recovery proceedings initiated pursuant to a recovery certificate issued after the Bank’s original application for recovery was decreed.
An Original Application filed by the Bank in 2016 was allowed on 8 June 2017, followed by issuance of a recovery certificate on 9 June 2017 for recovery of approximately ₹18.99 crore along with pendente lite and future interest at 12.85% per annum with monthly rests and costs. The Recovery Officer issued directions for disclosure of assets and payment pursuant to the recovery certificate, which were not complied with by the borrowers. Thereafter, properties mortgaged with the Bank at Jaipur and Kanpur were attached, and valuation reports were placed on record for auction.
During the recovery proceedings, objections were filed by one of the judgment debtors, to which the Bank responded. As no payment was made despite demand notices, the Bank filed multiple applications on 4 October 2018 seeking attachment of receivables and cash flows of educational institutions run by the borrowers, attachment of certain immovable property at New Delhi, disclosure of bank accounts and properties through the Income Tax Department, and details of bank accounts from the Indian Banks’ Association. These applications were allowed by the Recovery Officer on 11 October 2018. A recall application filed by the borrowers was dismissed on 3 December 2018.
