Jaypee lenders Infratech begin negotiating the NBCC bid under an order from the NCLAT.

By Abhay Harish Shah, Realty Quarter

State-owned NBCC, Jaypee Infratech’s debt-laden offers, are unlikely to dilute certain terms, including exemption from tax liability, yet are ready to negotiate a proposed unsold apartment, sources said. The lenders of Jaypee Infratech began negotiating the latter’s offer to acquire the property firm with NBCC.

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) had overturned the voting by home purchasers and lenders on the NBCC bid last week and allowed the renegotiation on the bid by 30 May. From 31 May, the voting process could begin.

According to the sources, lenders have determined objection to acquire up to 2,207 unsold flats worth Rs.1,756crore as proposed by NBCC in its revised offer.

NBCC has added that it is ready to negotiate on its proposal on unsold homes. However, sources indicated that NBCC would probably not dilute its tax exemption conditions.

In its revised offer, NBCC proposed infusion of Rs.200crore equity capital, transfer of 950 acres of land worth Rs.5,000crore as well as Yamuna Expressway to banks and completion of flats by July 2023 in order to settle an outstanding claim of Rs.23,723crore of financial creditors.

The Committee of Creditors (CoC), in which the buyers support the voting process while banking dissent, decided last week to cast their vote on NBCC’s revised proposal. Lenders wrote to the NBCC seeking clarifications on certain concessions requested in its resolution plan by the public sector company. NBCC, however, decided not to dilute the terms of the income tax exemption and to take the development authorities consent to the transfer of enterprises.

In the wake of an Interim Resolution Professional (IRP) flagging the lenders, the NBCC was sought to provide clarifications that NBCC’s bid was subject to and unconditional.

The IRP Anuj Jain had informed the CoC that the revised NBCC Offer would be conditional on the plan if key relief measures such as the exemption of tax on earned income and the exemption were taken for any transfer of business by the YEIDA (Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority).

In 2017, Jaypee Infratech had gone into insolvency process after an IDBI-led consortium was admitted by the National Corporate Law Tribunal (NCLT), which sought resolution of the realty firm.

The Rs.7,350-crore offer made by Lakshdeep, part of the Suraksha Group, was rejected by the lenders during the first round of insolvency proceedings. The IRP launched the second round of the bidding process later in October 2018 to revive Jaypee Infratech in NCLT direction.

Lenders, including banks and homebuyers, disallowed a bid by Suraksha Realty based in Mumbai earlier this month through a voting process, which resulted in the CoC deciding to consider NBCC’s offer.