In Brief
This contempt case involved the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) defying a Supreme Court order. On 13 October 2023, the Court directed the NCLAT to pronounce judgment only after the Annual General Meeting (AGM) results were declared. Despite counsel repeatedly informing the NCLAT Bench of this directive—with CCTV footage confirming this—the Bench pronounced judgment in willful defiance. The Members made false statements claiming they only learned of the order later. The Court set aside the NCLAT judgment and ordered it reheard by the Chairperson. The Member (Judicial) resigned; the Member (Technical) apologized. Mr. Deepak Kishan Chhabria and the Scrutinizer were ordered to pay penalties for acting in concert to delay AGM results, breaching earlier Court directions.
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