BYJU’S Insolvency: NCLT Questions RP’s Decision To Bar Glas Trust From CoC

The National Company Law Tribunal’s (NCLT) Bengaluru bench has questioned BYJU’S resolution professional (RP) Pankaj Srivastava’s decision to not include Glas Trust and Aditya Birla Finance in the committee of creditors (CoC), 

During a hearing on Wednesday (December 11), the Tribunal pointed out that the RP has failed to refuse to address its objections made in August over the constitution of the CoC, Economic Times reported.

“You filed this copy (CoC intimation) on August 24, and objections were raised on August 28. What have you done since August 28?,” the bench said. 

The bench has given the RP time till Thursday (December 12) to address the objections.

The RP’s counsel argued that the decision to not include Glas Trust was made as the latter’s $1.2 Bn claim on BYJU’S was already pending in the US. He pointed out that the exact claim can only be discerned when the US court decides on the matter. 

He added that the RP has the power to revise the claim amount if it is uncertain due to contingencies. Following the revision, the reconstitution of the CoC follows.

However, this was opposed by Glas Trust and Aditya Birla Finance. “Their plan is very clear. They want to avoid the CoC because it must be formed according to the original constitution. It has been illegally reconstituted by excluding us. They know that if a withdrawal application is to be filed, it must go before the CoC, which should include Glas, Aditya Birla, and others. Now, they are attempting to move the application without the CoC by making an application that is not maintainable at all,” Glas Trust’s counsel said. 

The RP had ousted both of the disgruntled creditors back in August. Following the decision, they moved the Supreme Court against the RP. Glas Trust even claimed that the RP is involved in a “secret plot” to reject its claims against the troubled edtech startup.

Meanwhile, Aditya Birla Finance had alleged that the RP committed a fraud by wrongfully labelling it as a “financial creditor”. 

Besides the legal troubles, BYJU’S is also facing troubles in selling off some of its stake in Aakash Institute.