Court restrains respondent from encashing bank guarantee, directs exchange with NTPC guarantee

The court issued a notice to the respondents, restraining respondent no.1 from encashing the Bank Guarantee for custom duty payment. The petitioner's bank guarantees were to be released, and NTPC was directed to provide its bank guarantee(s) in exchange. Respondents were granted one week to file a reply, with an opportunity for rejoinder. Respondent no.1 was prohibited from invoking the bank guarantees for advance authorization, and if already invoked, no recovery steps were to be taken. The next hearing was scheduled for a specific date.

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Issues:
1. Restraint on encashing Bank Guarantee for custom duty payment.
2. Non-replacement of bank guarantees by NTPC.
3. Invocation of petitioner's bank guarantees by respondent.
4. Requirement for NTPC to furnish its bank guarantee.

Analysis:
The petitioner sought to restrain respondent no.1 from encashing the Bank Guarantee for securing custom duty payment on imported Hot Rolled Plates. The petitioner's counsel referred to a previous order directing NTPC to replace the bank guarantee, which NTPC failed to do. Consequently, respondent no.1 invoked two bank guarantees of the petitioner, leading to the current petition before the court. The court noted that the petitioner's bank guarantees were to be released, and NTPC was supposed to provide its bank guarantee(s) in exchange.

The court issued notice to the respondents, who accepted and requested time to file a reply. A one-week period was granted for filing the reply, with an opportunity for rejoinder. In the interim, respondent no.1 was restrained from invoking the bank guarantees for the advance authorization. If already invoked, respondent no.1 was directed to ensure no recovery steps were taken from the banks involved. The next hearing was scheduled for a specific date, with the order to be provided under the signature of the Court Master.

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