Insolvency law: Govt sets up 14-member panel to identify issues

New Delhi: With rising number of cases under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, the government has set up a 14-member panel to identify and suggest ways to address issues faced in implementation of the law.

The Insolvency Law Committee, chaired by Corporate Affairs Secretary Injeti Srinivas, would take stock of the implementation of the Code, according to an official communication.

The move also comes against the backdrop of concerns in certain quarters about various aspects of the law including the possibility of promoters wresting back control of a company under insolvency process.

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) Chairperson M S Sahoo, RBI Executive Director Sudarshan Sen, former Lok Sabha Speaker T K Viswanathan, Edelweiss Group Chairman and CEO Rashesh Shah, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co Executive Chairman Shardul Shroff and Xpro India Chairman Sidharth Birla are among the panel members.

Other members include AZB & Partners Partner Bahram Vakil, SBI Stressed Assets Resolution Group MD B Sriram, Additional Secretary (Banking) at the Department of Financial Services and a Joint Secretary from the corporate affairs ministry.

Presidents of the institutes of chartered accountants, cost accountants and company secretaries are also part of the committee.

A recent order issued by the corporate affairs ministry said the panel would identify issues that might "impact the efficiency of the corporate insolvency resolution and liquidation framework" as well as make recommendations to address them.

More than 300 cases have been admitted for resolution by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), it added.

The order also said the committee would "submit its recommendations within two months from its first meeting".

The panel can also invite practitioners, experts or individuals having knowledge about insolvency, law or economics and "representatives from other regulators or ministries", it said.

The Code, which became operational in December last year, provides for a market-determined and time-bound insolvency resolution process.

A case is taken up for resolution under the Code only after receiving approval of the NCLT for the same.