IBC resolution plan binding effect extinguishes pre-resolution mining dues and bars post-approval demand notices.

Approved resolution plans under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code bind all stakeholders, including Government authorities, and claims covered by the plan cannot be enforced after approval. The Court applied the fresh slate principle to hold that pre-resolution mining dues falling within the plan's scope stood extinguished, so the subsequent demand notices were unsustainable. It distinguished reliance on Common Cause because the present dues were addressed by the approved plan and were not shown to survive it. Statutory claims, even if disputed, remain claims capable of resolution under the Code and cannot be pursued contrary to the plan. The amount paid under protest was therefore refundable or adjustable.

---

---

Issues: Whether the pre-resolution mining dues raised against the petitioner stood extinguished on approval of the resolution plan under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, and whether the consequent demand notices and refusal to issue/refund amounts paid under protest were sustainable.

Analysis: The approved resolution plan expressly covered claims, liabilities and government dues relating to the period prior to the plan effective date, and Section 31(1) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code made the approved plan binding on all stakeholders, including Central and State Governments. The Court applied the settled principle that a successful resolution applicant is entitled to commence the business on a fresh slate and that no surprise claims can be enforced after approval of the resolution plan. The State's reliance on the Supreme Court's decision in Common Cause was distinguished because the present dispute concerned dues that fell within the ambit of the resolution plan and were not shown to survive its approval. The Court also held that statutory claims, even if disputed, constitute claims capable of resolution under the Code and cannot be enforced contrary to the approved plan.

Conclusion: The pre-plan mining dues stood extinguished, the impugned demand notices were unsustainable, and the petitioner was entitled to refund or adjustment of the amount paid under protest.

---