NEW DELHI :
THE Mumbai bench of the
National Company Law Tribunal
(NCLT) has declared the former
Videocon Industries promoter
and directorVenugopal Nandlal
Dhoot as “Bankrupt”, admitting
the petition filed by public sector lender State Bank of India
over default of Rs 12,668 crore.
The Mumbai bench of NCLT
has also appointed a Bankruptcy
Trustee to conduct the bankruptcy process against Dhoot,
who had given personal guarantees for loan facilities availed
by Videocon Industries from
SBI and its erstwhile associate
banks, which were merged with
the leading bank.
“Venugopal Nandlal Dhoot,
the Personal Guarantor herein,
is declared as Bankrupt,” said an
order passed by a two-member
bench of NCLT on Thursday.
NCLT had directed the
Bankruptcy Trustee to issue a
Public Notice inviting claims
from the creditors of Dhoot and
said the “estate (property) of the
bankrupt (Dhoot) shall be divided among his creditors.”
Dhoot has been directed to
submit his statement of financial position to the bankruptcy
trustee within seven days from
the commencement of the bankruptcy proceedings.
“The Bankrupt (Dhoot) shall
submit his statement of financial position to the Bankruptcy
Trustee in the prescribed form
within seven days from the date
of this order, i.e. The bankruptcy commencement date,”it said.
Moreover, the bankruptcy
trustee will also submit a preliminary report to the tribunal
and the Committee of Creditors
within 90 days, followed by quarterly progress reports, said the
bench comprising Member
(Judicial) Vinay Goel and
Member (Technical) Charanjeet
Singh Gulati.
These bankruptcy proceedings against Dhoot “shall continue to have effect till thedebtor
is discharged under Section 138
of theCode,”NCLT said in its 12-
page order. The matter pertains to
Videocon Industries Ltd (VIL),
which had availed credit facilities from SBI and its erstwhile
associates - State Bank of Hyderabad, State Bank of
Mysore, State Bank of
Travancore, State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur and State
Bank of Patiala. In this, a certain amount was also availed
by Videocon
Telecommunications Ltd (VTL)
as a co-obligor.
However, it
defaulted, and according to the
SBI petition, the total amount
defaulted, including interest
and penalties, was Rs 12,668.06
crore as on September 30, 2026.
This comprises Rs 9,322.10
crore under the rupee term
loan facility, Rs 1,437.76 crore
under the VTL facility and Rs
1,908.19 crore under the working capital facility.
Dhoot had given personal
guarantees for facilities availed
by Videocon Industries from
SBI and its erstwhile associate
banks, which were merged with
SBI in April 2017. SBI invoked
the guarantees through
demand notices in February
2018. The NCLT has already
initiated the personal insolvency resolution process
against Dhoot on April 8, 2026.
During the personal insolvency resolution process, Dhoot
submitted a repayment plan
on June 16, 2026, offering Rs
600 crore over 36 months
through a proposed development project in Siliguri, which
was just 0.42 per cent of the
admitted dues.
However, the resolution professional found the proposal
contingent on future project
approvals and cash flows, with
no upfront payment. He reported that the plan was not prepared in consultation with him
as required under Section 105
of the Code and was contingent on future development,
approvals and cash flows.
On July 17, the tribunal
rejected the plan and terminated the process. Following
this, SBI filed the bankruptcy
petition on September 24, within the three-month limit under
Section 121(2). NCLT said: “We
are satisfied that the Petition
complies with all the requirements prescribed in Section
123 of the Code. Therefore, we
consider it proper to admit this
Petition.”
The NCLT order, which
records no appearance for
Dhoot, has directed the
Bankruptcy Trustee to “submit
to this NCLT and the CoC a preliminary report within 90 days
of the bankruptcy commencement date.”