UltraTech gets Supreme Court boost in Binani Cement battle



Source: DNA

Cement major UltraTech’s chance of winning the Binani Cement battle received a major boost after the Supreme Court in its hearing on Thursday refused to interfere in a case filed by Dalmia Bharat. The Dalmia Bharat-owned Rajputana Properties had filed a case against an National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) order that had considered a revised bid from UltraTech.

Following the Supreme Court hearing, the proposed meeting of the committee of creditors of Binani Cement is likely to be held today in Mumbai. Although Dalmia Bharat, too, was asked to put in a fresh bid, it has so far refused to do so. Its contention has been that the UltraTech bid was illegal as it goes against the provisions of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.

Dalmia Bharat could be in a tight spot in today’s meeting, as operational creditors have been allowed by the resolution professional to represent themselves.

Binani Operational Creditors Forum has preferred UltraTech over Dalmia Bharat, as the latter doesn’t intend to pay off all the dues of Binani. As a result, the Binani creditors’ forum is likely to bat for UltraTech’s revised bid.

NCLAT would be hearing the case on a daily basis starting May 22.

The apex court last month had rejected the demand for an out-of-court settlement between the promoters of Binani Industries and UltraTech.

Before the SC verdict, UltraTech revised its bid upward to Rs 7,960 crore, which is about Rs 1,000 crore higher than Dalmia’s offer of Rs 6,590 crore.

Earlier this month, the Kolkata bench of National Company Law Tribunal asked the committee of creditors to consider the revised bid of UltraTech, which may be accepted.

Source: DNA