TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2022 (5) TMI 810
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....vocate Mr. Dipankar Das, Advocate Ms. Sajana Nandi, Advocate For the Respondent : Mr. JishnuSaha, Senior Advocate Mr. Usha Nath Banerjee, Advocate Mr. Avishek Guha, Advocate Mr. Chitresh Saraogi, Advocate ORDER Per :Harish Chander Suri, Member (Technical): 1. The present I.A. has been filed by the Resolution Professional seeking direction upon Respondent No. 1 to hand over the possession of Birpara Tea Estate ("Tea Estate") to the Resolution Professional. Submissions of the Learned Senior Counsel appearing for the Applicant 2. The Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) was initiated against the Corporate Debtor vide an order of this Adjudicating Authority dated 05.03.2020 and the Applicant herein was appointed as Inte....
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.... 562 of 2016 wherein the Respondent Nos. 2 to 5 prayed for handing over the Tea Estate to the to Respondent No. 1. 8. The Committee of Creditors informed the Applicant that in a newspaper publication dated 12.02.2021, it was mentioned that the Tea Estate would resume operations under the Management of the Respondent No. 1 with effect from 16.02.2021. Meeting was held between the Respondent Nos. 2 to 5 wherein it was resolved that the possession, operation and management of the Tea Estate. Such action is clearly in violation of the Code. 9. The Respondent Nos. 2 to 5 have filed another application in MAT 562 of 2016 praying for recording the decision taken in the meeting on 12.02.2021. 10. The Applicant wrote to the District Magistr....
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....ondent No. 1 has applied for grant of leases of the entire Tea Garden in its favour as per law and such application is under due consideration by the State Authority. The Respondent occupies the said Tea Estates as a "licensee" of the State of West Bengal. 15. The Corporate Debtor abandoned the Tea Garden in the year 2019 and at the invitation of the State Government, and all recognised registered Trade Unions, Political Leaders, the Respondent No. 1 took possession of the Tea Garden and has been running the Tea Garden since 01.07.2021. 16. The lease of the Tea Garden granted to the Corporate Debtor stood terminated by efflux of time and the Corporate Debtor abandoned the Tea Garden in 2019, long before admission of CIRP against the C....
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.... workers without a single default or any retrenchment and is also making regular timely deposits of Provident Funds and other statutory deposits after around a decade and also paid the Land Revenue (Khajna) and necessary taxes payable to the Authorities and has been provided by the concerned Authorities all required permissions and licenses to run and operate 'Birpara Tea Estate'. 18. The learned Senior Counsel placed reliance on the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Embassy Properties Pvt. Ltd. v. State of Karnataka &Ors, (2020)13 SCC 308, and Gujrat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd. v. Amit Gupta &Ors, (2021) 7 SCC 209, in support of his contention that CD cannot seek to exercise a right which falls out of the purview of the Code, and that ....
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....The Respondent No. 1 was never handed over nor is in possession or control of any statutory financial records of the Corporate Debtor, the question of the Respondent being required to make over the same to the Applicant also does not arise. The books and records maintained by the Respondent in the course of managing the said Tea Garden are books and records of the Respondent and not of the Corporate Debtor, hence the Respondent is under no obligation to hand over the books and financial statements to the Applicant. Analysis and Findings 22. During the course of hearing it was noticed that, in this application also, the question of law is similar to the one in I.A.(IB) No. 1256/KB/2020 and I.A.(IB) No. 1111/KB/2021. These two applicati....