Summary – National Firm Law Tribunal (NCLT) Notices Over Byju’s Nonpayment of Dues
• NCLT issued notices to Byju’s parent firm, Learn Pvt Ltd, in three cases of nonpayment of dues to operating creditors.
• Hearings are set for July 3 in all three claims.
• Byju has two weeks to respond and the petitioner another week to file a rebuttal.
• Byju’s owes ₹1.43 crore to McGraw Hill and ₹6 crore to Cogent.
• At least seven suppliers have approached NCLT to reclaim their debts.
Think and On May 22, the National firm Law Tribunal (NCLT) issued notices to Byju’s parent firm, Learn Pvt Ltd, in three cases of nonpayment of dues to operating creditors.
The hearings in all three claims, brought by McGraw Hill, Cogent E-services, and AG Automation, a producer of automation control devices, are set for July 3.
The NCLT bench granted Byju two weeks to respond and the petitioner another week to file a rebuttal. Byju’s owes ₹1.43 crore to McGraw Hill and ₹6 crore to Cogent, according to the petitions.
At least seven suppliers have approached the NCLT to reclaim their debts. The beleaguered edtech company is defending an oppression and mismanagement lawsuit filed by its investors in the NCLT.
NCLT is a quasi-judicial authority incorporated for dealing with corporate disputes that are of civil nature arising under the Companies Act. Objectives. Initiated before the Company Law Board under the previous act (the Companies Act 1956).
In November 2023, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) filed the first insolvency plea against Byju’s, alleging default on a payment of ₹158 crore. The plea is in the advanced stages of hearing at the NCLT.
As a result, France-based teleperformance business services company, Glas Trust Company (the lenders), and digital marketing firm Surfer Technologies all filed for insolvency.
Arjun Mohan, Byju’s chosen CEO, and Ajay Goel, CFO, both resigned recently. Furthermore, Mohandas Pai and Rajnish Kumar intend to stand down at the end of their one-year terms.
Byju’s has also halted part of staff salaries for up to two months since March due to a lack of finances. Byju Raveendran has been interacting with employees via email on a sporadic basis, telling them that their situation will improve in a few days once the company can use funds from a recent rights issue.
On Tuesday, business line reported that a group of former employees of troubled edtech major Byju’s is planning to drag the company to the NCLT to demand their dues from the company.
CONCLUSION : The National Law Tribunal (NCLT) has issued notices to Byju’s parent firm, Think and Learn Pvt Ltd, in three cases of nonpayment of dues to operating creditors, with hearings scheduled for July 3.