The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has deferred a settlement between Byju Raveendran and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to Thursday after a US-based creditor of the edtech firm alleged the funds used for the rapprochement were `tainted’.
The appellate tribunal asked Raveendran to file an undertaking that the source of the money was not tainted.
On July 16, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) had admitted Think & Learn Pvt Ltd (TLPL) into insolvency on a plea filed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) over alleged default of over ₹158 crore. Raveendran had moved the NCLAT against the order.
At the NCLAT hearing on Tuesday, the BCCI counsel indicated both parties were working on a settlement.
During the proceedings, the counsel for Byju’s submitted a draft memorandum
of settlement between the company and the BCCI.
As per the settlement terms, the money will be paid in two instalments of ₹50 crore each and the rest in the third instalment.
One tranche of ₹50 crore was already paid on Tuesday. The payment was made by Riju Raveendran, the brother of Byju Raveendran.
However, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who was appearing as an intervener in this matter for US-based creditor Gas Trust LLC, which is claiming default of ₹8,000 crore loans, alleged that this money is from ‘round tripping’.
He asked the NCLAT not to accept the settlement calling it tainted money which was stolen from his client. He also questioned how a company, which is not even able to pay salaries to its employees, has now arranged the money.
“The source is tainted. How can the court allow settlement?,” said Rohatgi, and asked “has it (money) come from an official account” of Byju’s?
Rohatgi further alleged that both Byju and Riju conspired and stole $500 million belonging to the US-based creditor.
“It is our money which has been withdrawn by these fellows,” said Rohatgi while reading a judgment by a Delaware-based court of the US, in a bankruptcy case against US entity Byju’s Alpha.