Limitation under IBC Section 9 bars an insolvency petition filed beyond three years without condonation of delay.

Applications under Section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 are governed by Article 137 of the Limitation Act, 1963. Where the operational debt default is more than three years old and no application for condonation of delay is filed, the insolvency petition is barred by limitation and not maintainable. On the facts noted, the last payment was received in February 2016 and the application was filed in October 2019, so the NCLT dismissed it at the threshold and no corporate insolvency resolution process was initiated.

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Issues: Whether the application under Section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 was barred by limitation and therefore not maintainable.

Analysis: The application was filed beyond three years from the date of default. The last payment was received in February 2016, while the application was filed in October 2019. The prescribed limitation period under Article 137 of the Limitation Act, 1963 applies to applications under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, and no application for condonation of delay was filed.

Conclusion: The application was held to be barred by limitation and not maintainable.

Final Conclusion: The insolvency application was dismissed at the threshold on limitation grounds, and no corporate insolvency resolution process was initiated.

Ratio Decidendi: Applications under Section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 are governed by Article 137 of the Limitation Act, 1963, and where the default is more than three years old without condonation of delay, the application is barred.

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