Pre-CIRP attachment survives insolvency moratorium when later registry entry is only ministerial and not a fresh charge.

A pre-CIRP attachment of the corporate debtor's immovable property was held not to be hit by the insolvency moratorium merely because the encumbrance entry was recorded later in the revenue register. The attachment order had been issued before commencement of insolvency proceedings, and the later registry entry was treated as a ministerial reflection of an already existing attachment, not a fresh charge created during moratorium. The adjudicating authority also proceeded without considering the recovery authority's objections on record. The attachment therefore survived, the impugned order could not stand, and the appeal was allowed.

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Issues: Whether an attachment of the corporate debtor's immovable property made prior to commencement of the corporate insolvency resolution process could be treated as hit by moratorium merely because its recording in the revenue register was made during the moratorium period.

Analysis: The attachment order was issued by the provident fund recovery authority well before initiation of the corporate insolvency resolution process. The later step of obtaining or recording an encumbrance entry did not create a fresh charge during the moratorium, but only reflected an earlier subsisting attachment. The adjudicating authority also disposed of the application without considering the recovery authority's objections, although they had been filed on record. On these facts, the moratorium under the insolvency code did not nullify the pre-existing attachment.

Conclusion: The issue was decided in favour of the appellant. The attachment survived, the impugned order could not be sustained, and the appeal was allowed.

Final Conclusion: A pre-CIRP attachment is not extinguished merely because its registry entry is made during the moratorium, and the insolvency moratorium cannot be used to invalidate an already existing attachment.

Ratio Decidendi: A moratorium under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code does not invalidate an attachment that existed before commencement of insolvency proceedings, and a later recording of that attachment is only ministerial.

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