Compliance relief for listed insolvent companies may be extended where pandemic disruption and bona fide efforts prevent timely statutory filings.

A resolution professional facing compliance difficulty during the COVID-19 disruption sought additional time to complete audited financial results and other securities-law filings for a listed corporate debtor. The Tribunal, acting on its residual and procedural powers under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code framework, accepted that bona fide efforts had been made to obtain regulatory relief and that no response had been received, while also noting the practical disruption caused by the pandemic and the subsequent liquidation stage. It therefore granted extension of time up to 31.03.2021 for compliance with Regulation 24A and related SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015 requirements.

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Issues: Whether the Resolution Professional was entitled to extension of time for filing audited financial results and other statutory compliances under the securities law regime in view of the disruption caused by the COVID-19 lockdown and the pending insolvency proceedings.

Analysis: The Application was moved under Section 60(5) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, with reference to the Tribunal's procedural powers under the National Company Law Tribunal Rules, 2016. The record showed that the Resolution Professional had been placed under practical difficulty in meeting the reporting timelines applicable to a listed corporate debtor, had made efforts to seek relief from the regulatory authorities, and had not received any response. The Tribunal also took note of the prevailing pandemic-related disruption and the fact that liquidation proceedings had subsequently been ordered, and considered that additional time could be granted for the compliance periods falling in July, August and September 2020.

Conclusion: The Application was allowed, and extension of time up to 31.03.2021 was granted for filing the audited financial results and for complying with Regulation 24A and other applicable SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015 requirements.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a resolution professional shows bona fide efforts to secure regulatory relief and demonstrates genuine compliance difficulty arising from exceptional disruption, the Tribunal may exercise its residual and procedural powers to grant time for statutory filings in insolvency-related matters.

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