Voluntary liquidation procedure limited to statutory final report; tribunal declined status report, re-publication, and extension relief.

In a voluntary liquidation under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, the tribunal confined itself to the statutory scheme, which contemplates notice, completion of liquidation steps, and submission of the final report for adjudication. It held that no status report was required to be filed before it, it had no power in the present proceedings to extend the liquidation period or admit the status report on record, and procedural relief such as re-publication of the public announcement was not granted. The liquidator was left to complete the process in accordance with law and place the final report before the tribunal.

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Issues: Whether the liquidator's request to direct re-publication of the public announcement and to take the status report on record could be granted in a voluntary liquidation proceeding.

Analysis: The application arose in a voluntary liquidation under section 59 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 and was sought under the tribunal's procedural powers. The order proceeds on the basis that, in voluntary liquidation, the statutory scheme contemplates notice, conduct of liquidation, and submission of a final report after completion of the process. The record showed that the earlier advertisement had been issued, the succeeding liquidator had taken over after resignation of the earlier liquidator, and irregularities regarding distribution and liabilities had been noted. The tribunal held that no status report was required to be filed before it, that only the final report under the prescribed regulations was contemplated for adjudication, and that it had no power in the present proceedings to extend the liquidation period or to admit the status report on record. It further observed that, if necessary, the liquidator could complete the process in accordance with law and place the final report for adjudication.

Conclusion: The request for re-publication and for taking the status report on record was rejected.

Ratio Decidendi: In a voluntary liquidation proceeding, the tribunal will not entertain a status report or direct procedural reliefs beyond the statutory scheme where the regulations contemplate only compliance steps and submission of the final report for adjudication.

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