Under the IBC, a written loan agreement is not a sine qua non...

Under the IBC, a written loan agreement is not a sine qua non for proving financial debt; debt and default may be established from contemporaneous records such as bank statements, acknowledgements, promissory notes, TDS on interest and post-dated cheques, so rejection solely for absence of a written contract is unsustainable. Withdrawal of an earlier Section 7 petition without leave does not bar a fresh petition when a subsequent breach of settlement creates a new cause of action, and res judicata does not apply in that situation. The adjudicating authority's role is limited to verifying debt and default from the record, and where material supports both, admission of the petition follows.

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