Relief to Aditya Birla Capital: Himachal Pradesh HC Sets Two-Month Deadline for Pending SARFAESI Plea [Read Order]
The court clarified that while deciding the application, the lower court must afford an opportunity of being heard to the petitioner and other stakeholders
The Himachal Pradesh High Court has provided relief to Aditya Birla Capital Ltd. by directing a lower court to decide its pending application under the SARFAESI Act, 2002, setting a two-month deadline for the proceedings.The court clarified that while deciding the application, the lower court must afford an opportunity of being heard to the petitioner and other stakeholders.
The writ petition was filed by Aditya Birla Capital Ltd. against the State of Himachal Pradesh and others. The petitioner's primary grievance was that its application under Section 14 of the SARFAESI Act, which seeks possession of secured assets, was pending adjudication before the Court of the Assistant Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM), Nalagarh, without any progress. Consequently, the petitioner sought the High Court's intervention to issue necessary directions to expedite the hearing and conclude the proceedings in a time-bound manner.
A division bench comprising Justice Sandeep Sharma and Justice Jiya Lal Bhardwaj observed that the writ petition was prima facie not maintainable. However, considering the 'innocuous prayer' made by the petitioner, the court deemed it appropriate to intervene and pass a direction rather than dismiss the petition.
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Accordingly, the court disposed of the petition and directed the ACJM, Nalagarh, to pass a suitable order and decide the SARFAESI application expeditiously, preferably within a period of two months. The court clarified that while deciding the application, the lower court must afford an opportunity of being heard to the petitioner and other stakeholders.
It was further clarified that the High Court had not expressed any opinion on the merits of the case, and the lower court must decide the matter independently, without being influenced by the filing of the present petition.
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