NEW DELHI: A day after NCLT barred him from alienating any of his property and stayed its order allowing him to settle his personal insolvency proceedings by paying around Rs 6.3 crore as against admitted claims of Rs 22,006.5 crore, Zee Group founder Subhash Chandra questioned the validity of the order before NCLAT. He alleged the tribunal did not have the power to constitute a five-member special bench, as was done to decide his case.Senior advocate Sasmit Patra, appearing for Chandra, submitted before an NCLAT bench of officiating chairperson Justice Yogesh Khanna and technical members Barun Mitra and Ajai Das Mehrotra that the order was “faulty and wrong”.“The scope of Section 419(5) is very limited. If there is a differing view, then that differing view has to be taken up by another member… It does not empower NCLT under IBC or company law to form a five-member bench… Under which power? When did this five-member bench sit together?” he submitted.The appellate tribunal was hearing appeals filed by Union Bank of India (UK), Canara Bank and LIC Housing Finance against the Aug 25 opinion approving Chandra’s repayment plan.
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Solicitor general Tushar Mehta, appearing for the creditors, submitted that the petition filed against the third member’s order “may be disposed of with liberty to revive it” since some respondents could challenge the reference itself.Patra raised a grievance that Chandra had been vilified across the country over a proposed payment of Rs 6.5 crore. The solicitor general took exception to this. The NCLAT bench agreed, saying, “If you have any grievances, the matter is pending before NCLT; you raise grievances right there.” tnn