JUDGMENT :

Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud, CJI.

1. Thirty-nine Debt Recovery Tribunals¹[“DRTs”] and five Debt Recovery Appellate Tribunals²[“DRATs”] have been constituted under the Recovery of Debts and Bankruptcy Act 1993³[ “1993 Act”].

2. The Department of Financial Services in the Union Ministry of Finance issued a notification on 23 January 2020 by which the Debt Recovery Tribunals (DRTs) and Debt Recovery Appellate Tribunals (DRATs) Electronic Filing Rules 2020⁴[“2020 Rules”] were notified. Originally, the e-filing of pleadings and applications was made optional. On 22 July 2021, a notification was issued by which the e-filing of cases involving a value of Rs 100 crores and above was made mandatory. At a conference of the Chairpersons of DRATs and the Presiding Officers of DRTs on 9 June 2022, it was recommended that e-filing should be made mandatory, irrespective of the amount involved in the proceedings.

3. On 31 January 2023, a notification was issued by the Union government in exercise of powers under Section 36 of the 1993 Act for amending the Electronic Filing Rules so as to make e-filing of pleadings by applicants mandatory. Any other form of filing, it is provided, shall not be