TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (5) TMI 652
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....ear without interim protection. 1.1. It is stated, as no repayment plan was submitted, Respondent No.3 disposed of CP(IB) No. 88/95/HDB/2021 and filed IA (IBC) 534/2025 in CP(IB) No. 88 of 2021 under Section 123 to initiate bankruptcy proceedings against Petitioner. During pendency of Appeal, the NCLT, Hyderabad Bench by order dated 12.11.2024 permitted initiation of bankruptcy proceedings in IA (IBC) 534/2025 and by order dated 19.12.2025, declared Petitioner as bankrupt and appointed a Bankruptcy Trustee, which is under challenge before the NCLAT. 1.2. Petitioner is therefore, stated to have filed Writ Petition No. 39689 of 2025 challenging the orders dated 12.11.2024 and 19.12.2025 on jurisdictional grounds, which was dismissed on 24.12.2025 due to pendency of matters before NCLAT. Against the said order, SLP (C) No. 3165 of 2026 was filed before the Hon'ble Supreme Court, wherein notice was issued on 23.01.2026 and the matter is pending. During pendency of the said case, Respondent No.3 addressed letter dated 28.01.2026 to Respondent No.2 seeking restraint/suspension of Petitioner's international travel until completion of bankruptcy proceedings or further orders of the N....
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....1, despite the said order being operative without any stay. Petitioner had earlier challenged the order dated 19.12.2025 in Writ Petition No. 39689 of 2025, which was dismissed on 24.12.2025, and thereafter filed SLP (C) No. 3165 of 2026, wherein notice was issued on 23.01.2026, but no interim protection has been granted, hence, Petitioner cannot re-agitate the issue through the present Writ Petition. 2.1. It is stated, Petitioner is indulging in forum shopping and filing successive proceedings to stall the bankruptcy process, contrary to the scheme of the 2016 Code, which provides a time-bound mechanism. The 3rd Respondent functions under the supervision of the NCLT, Hyderabad and any grievance against her actions lies before the said Tribunal under the statutory mechanism and the communications dated 28.01.2026 and 02.02.2026 are only informational in nature and not orders capable of being quashed under Article 226. 2.2. Petitioner, being the promoter and personal guarantor, guaranteed financial facilities of Rs.25 crores granted by L&T Finance Limited to Deccan Chronicle Holdings Ltd. under loan agreement dated 13.05.2011; CIRP was initiated on 19.07.2017 and a Resolution ....
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....yderabad, while the Petitioner retains the right to seek permission. Section 141(1)(f) of the Code imposes a statutory restriction that a bankrupt shall not travel overseas without permission of the Adjudicating Authority from 19.12.2025 until discharge under Section 138 or modification under Section 142, and the object is to ensure presence, cooperation, investigation, prevention of absconding and protection of creditors' interests. 2.6. It is stated finally that Petitioner has an efficacious remedy to seek permission from the NCLT under Section 141(1)(f), and the 2nd Respondent is required to take administrative measures to ensure compliance with the statutory restriction, which does not amount to impounding under the Passports Act, 1967, and there is no violation of Article 21 nor applicability of Office Memorandum dated 22.02.2021. 3. Petitioner filed reply stating that upon declaration of a person as bankrupt, a public notice under Section 130 of the Code is required to be issued by the NCLT inviting claims within ten days from commencement of bankruptcy proceedings, to be published in English and vernacular newspapers having sufficient circulation where the bankrupt res....
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....ative, and no material has been produced to show any attempt to travel abroad or abscond, and references to claims of Rs. 7852,98,22,295.65 Ps. pending cases and 5 CBI matters are irrelevant and prejudicial, and even in criminal proceedings, absolute travel ban without court order violates Article 21, and therefore, civil insolvency proceedings cannot justify unilateral restriction. 3.4. The order dated 10.02.2026 in IA (IBC) No. 255 of 2026 directing submission of Form-E is subsequent to the impugned communications and has no bearing on their legality, and Petitioner has complied with the said order. The distinction sought to be drawn between impounding under Section 10(3) of the Passports Act, 1967 and the impugned communications is untenable, as courts consider the effect and not the form, and the communications produce the same consequence as impounding, and Section 10(3) provides exhaustive grounds which do not include bankruptcy, and the 3rd Respondent has no authority under the Passports Act, 1967. 3.5. The case of petitioner is that the 3rd Respondent admits absence of power under the Passports Act, 1967 and non-issuance of binding directions, which itself establishes....
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....espondents 1 and 2 and Sri B. Vishnu Rao, learned counsel for Respondent No.3. 5. From a perusal of the material on record, it is evident that the order dated 19.12.2025 in IA (IBC) No. 534 of 2025 in CP(IB) No. 88/95/HDB/2021 passed by the Tribunal, declaring Petitioner as bankrupt is subsisting and operative, and no stay has been granted either by the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, Chennai or by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in SLP (C) No. 3165 of 2026 wherein notice was issued on 23.01.2026. The statutory consequences flowing from the said order, including those under Section 141(1)(f) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, therefore remain in force. 6. Section 141(1)(f) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 expressly provides that a bankrupt shall not be permitted to travel overseas without permission of the Adjudicating Authority. The restriction is statutory in nature and operates by force of law from the bankruptcy commencement date i.e. 19.12.2025. The communications dated 28.01.2026 and 02.02.2026 merely bring this statutory position to the notice of Respondent No.2 and request adherence to the same. The said communications do not create any indepen....