IDBI's appeal against Zee Entertainment delayed by NCLAT

The Tribunal has rescheduled the hearing for the NCLT order that dismissed the insolvency request against Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) to December 6.

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has decided to delay the hearing of IDBI Bank's appeal against the the merger of Zee Entertainment Enterprises and Culver Max Entertainment, also known as Sony Pictures. The new hearing date has been set for December 6, as reported by Moneycontrol.

In May 2023, the Mumbai branch of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) declined IDBI's request, stating that it was not allowed under Section 10A of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

Section 10A states that for a period of one year starting from March 25, 2020, creditors, both financial and operational, are prohibited from starting a corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP) against a debtor for any defaults occurring during this time.

The government included a specific provision in the IBC to assist companies when economic activities restarted after the phased lockdowns caused by Covid. A two-member NCLT bench stated that ZEEL, the corporate guarantor for the loan taken by Siti Networks from IDBI Bank, defaulted. This default occurred during the specified period mentioned in Section 10A.