The appellate tribunal observed that the settlement was reached before the Committee of Creditors (CoC) was formed. Given that the source of the settlement funds was undisputed, there was no justification for continuing the company’s insolvency process.
On August 2, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) approved the settlement between Byju Raveendran and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), leading to the removal of Byju’s parent company, Think and Learn, from the insolvency resolution process.
NCLAT stated, “Given the undertaking and affidavit submitted, the settlement is approved, the appeal is successful, and the previous order is overturned. However, should there be any breach of the undertaking, the insolvency order will be reinstated.”
The appellate tribunal observed that the settlement was reached before the Committee of Creditors (CoC) was formed and noted that the source of the settlement funds was not contested. As a result, there was no reason to keep the company in the insolvency process.
With this decision, Byju Raveendran will regain control of the company, as the NCLAT has suspended the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) order that had placed the company into insolvency.
The tribunal also rejected the objections from US-based lenders, who claimed the settlement was compromised.
On August 1, Riju Raveendran, who has agreed to pay Rs 158 crore to the BCCI, appeared in court through senior advocate Puneet Bali. Riju provided an affidavit and undertaking, explaining that the payment to BCCI comes from his personal funds acquired from the sale of Think and Learn’s shares between 2015 and 2022.
According to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016, the control of a company is transferred from its board when it is admitted to insolvency resolution.
On July 16, the NCLT had admitted Think and Learn to insolvency resolution based on a petition by BCCI. Pankaj Srivastava was appointed as the interim resolution professional to manage the company until the creditors form a Committee of Creditors.
The NCLT had also denied Byju’s request to refer the dispute to arbitration. The BCCI’s claim, as stated in the November 2023 order, was that Byju’s defaulted on a payment of Rs 158 crore.
