SARFAESI Section 14 proceedings are ministerial; no prior borrower notice or hearing is required before possession assistance.

Proceedings under Section 14 of the SARFAESI Act are ministerial and executory, not adjudicatory, so the District Magistrate must only verify the statutory preconditions and affidavit before assisting possession of the secured asset. No prior notice or hearing to the borrower is required at that stage, and action taken in conformity with Section 14 is protected from challenge. Where the borrowers had already received notice under Section 13(2) and pursued remedies under Section 17, a challenge to the Section 14 order for alleged violation of natural justice was not maintainable. The Article 227 petition was therefore dismissed and the possession assistance order was left undisturbed.

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Issues: Whether the order passed by the District Magistrate under Section 14 of the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002 was liable to be interfered with on the ground of absence of notice and violation of natural justice, and whether the challenge before the Tribunal was barred by limitation.

Analysis: The statutory scheme under Sections 13(2), 13(4), 14 and 17 shows that once the borrower defaults and the secured creditor takes measures under Section 13(4), the secured creditor may seek assistance of the District Magistrate for taking possession of the secured asset. The function under Section 14 is limited, non-adjudicatory and executory. The District Magistrate is required to verify the affidavit and the basic statutory preconditions, but the provision does not require issuance of notice to the borrower or hearing before passing the order. In view of Section 14(3), the act done by the District Magistrate in pursuance of Section 14 cannot be called in question in any court or authority. The borrowers had already received notice under Section 13(2), had filed proceedings under Section 17, and were aware of the measures already taken. The Tribunal's view on limitation did not survive once the challenge to the Section 14 order itself was held not maintainable.

Conclusion: The challenge to the Section 14 order failed. The District Magistrate's order was not invalid for want of notice, and the petitioners were not entitled to relief under Article 227.

Final Conclusion: The applications under Article 227 were dismissed, and the order of the District Magistrate for assistance in taking possession under the SARFAESI framework was left undisturbed.

Ratio Decidendi: Proceedings under Section 14 of the SARFAESI Act are ministerial and executory in nature, do not require prior notice or hearing to the borrower, and the District Magistrate's action taken in conformity with the statutory preconditions is protected from challenge.

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