Statutory rehabilitation forum prevails over writ court interim management of a sick industrial undertaking.

When a sick industrial company's revival was already before the BIFR under the SICA, the writ court should not impose an ad hoc arrangement for running the undertaking. The High Court noted that rehabilitation and viability assessment were within the statutory remit of the expert forum, which was meant to consider competing proposals from all interested parties. It held that operational directions appointing a Special Officer, taking possession, preparing an inventory, and managing the mill through a committee could not displace that statutory process. The impugned directions were set aside, and the parties were left to pursue their rehabilitation proposals before the BIFR.

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Issues: Whether the writ court could, during pendency of proceedings before the BIFR, direct a Special Officer to take possession of the mill, prepare inventory, and run the mill with a committee of management, or whether such matters had to be left to the statutory rehabilitation process under the SICA.

Analysis: The statutory scheme under the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Act, 1985 entrusts consideration of revival and rehabilitation of a sick industrial company to the BIFR, an expert body equipped to examine competing proposals and determine viability. Where the company's revival was already under consideration before the BIFR, the High Court found that an ad hoc interim arrangement for running the mill was not appropriate. The materials showed that the matter was still within the statutory framework, and the proper course was for all interested parties, including the workers and the proposed collaborator, to place their proposals before the BIFR for decision in accordance with law.

Conclusion: The direction appointing a Special Officer to run the mill with a committee of management could not be sustained and was set aside; the parties were relegated to the BIFR for consideration of their rehabilitation proposals.

Final Conclusion: The appeals succeeded to the extent that the impugned operational directions were annulled, while the rehabilitation controversy was left to the statutory authority for expeditious consideration.

Ratio Decidendi: When a special statutory forum is seized of a sick industrial company's revival, the writ court should not supplant that forum by imposing an interim running arrangement for the undertaking.

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