Vivek Chhatre Vs Union of India Through Ministry of Corporate Affairs & Ors (Delhi High Court)
The Delhi High Court has dismissed an appeal by Vivek Chhatre against a previous order from a single judge, in a case involving the National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) and Mahindra Holidays and Resorts India Limited (MHRIL). The appeal sought to compel the NFRA to enforce its own order and investigate alleged misconduct by MHRIL’s auditors.
Chhatre’s initial writ petition, W.P.(C) 11707/2024, requested a writ of mandamus to force the NFRA to enforce an order it had issued on March 29, 2023. That order, which directed MHRIL to rectify certain accounting disclosures, was a result of an earlier writ petition filed by Chhatre. In that prior case, the court had directed the NFRA to address the issues he raised.
The appellant’s petition before the single judge also sought directions for the NFRA to recommend new accounting standards to the Central Government and to initiate investigations against MHRIL’s statutory auditors for alleged misconduct.
The single judge, however, found the plea for judicial monitoring of the NFRA’s compliance order to be non-maintainable. The court noted that once the NFRA had issued its directions, it was up to the authority to ensure compliance. The NFRA’s counsel had stated in court that its jurisdiction was limited to passing directions under Section 132 of the Companies Act, 2013 and that it was aware of its responsibilities.
