IMPORTANT POINTS
(1) Writ Petition – High Court will ordinarily not entertain a petition under Article 226 of Constitution if an effective remedy is available to aggrieved person.
(2) Auction sale of secured asset – Statutory alternative remedy – In such matters, High Court should not entertain petition under Article 226 of Constitution particularly when an alternative statutory remedy is available.

JUDGMENT :

B.R. GAVAI, J.

1. Leave granted.

2. This appeal challenges the order dated 4th February 2022, passed by the Division Bench of the High Court for the State of Telangana at Hyderabad in Writ Petition No. 5275 of 2021, whereby the High Court disposed of the writ petition filed by Dr. M.V. Ramana Rao, respondent No. 3 herein (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Borrower’). The High Court set aside the order dated 2nd February 2021, passed by the Debts Recovery Tribunal-II at Hyderabad (hereinafter referred to as ‘DRT’) and allowed Miscellaneous Application (M.A.) No. 97 of 2020 in Securitization Application (S.A.) No. 1476 of 2017 filed by the Borrower for the restoration of the said S.A. No. 1476 of 2017 filed by him under Section 17 of the Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002 (‘SARFAESI Act’ for short). The Borrower had filed S.A. No. 1476 of 2017 against the Notice dated 2nd September 2017 issued by the UCO Bank (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Respondent-Bank’) for the sale of his mortgaged properties which was to be conducted by the Authorized Officer (Respondent No.2) of the Respondent-Bank in light of the default in repayment of loan by the Borrower. The DRT, in its aforementioned order dated 2nd February 2021, had dismissed the M.A. No. 97 of 2020 for the restoration of S.A. No. 1476 of 2017, which had been previously dismissed as withdrawn vide DRT vide order dated 21st September 2020. The Division Bench of the High Court, in the impugned order, while setting aside the order of DRT dated 2nd February 2021, further directed DRT to proceed with S.A. No. 1476 of 2017 in accordance with law.

3. The facts, in brief, giving rise to the present appeal are as under:

3.1 The Borrower had availed a loan from the Respondent- Bank and in order to secure the said loan, the Borrower had mortgaged four properties (hereinafter referred to as ‘scheduled properties’) situated at Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh as collateral security. However, the Borrower defaulted in the repayment of the loan amount, which led the Respondent-Bank to initiate proceedings against the borrower under the SARFAESI Act.

3.2 Thereafter, the Respondent-Bank issued an Auction Sale Notice on 2nd September 2017 for auctioning off the scheduled properties and published information about the same in the Times of India and one other vernacular newspaper. According to the said Auction Sale Notice, the auction was to be conducted on 14th December 2017.

3.3 Aggrieved by the Auction Sale Notice, the Borrower preferred a securitization application being S.A. No.1476 of 2017 before DRT under Section 17 of the SARFAESI Act, thereby inter alia praying for setting aside of the same.

3.4 In the meanwhile, the auction was conducted on 14th December 2017 by the Respondent-Bank through Respondent No.2. The PHR Invent Educational Society, (hereinafter referred to as the ‘auction purchaser’), i.e., the appellant herein participated in the said auction and emerged as the highest bidder for a bid of Rs.5,72,22,200/-. The appellant deposited 25% of the bid amount i.e. Rs. 1,38,05,550/- including the Earnest Money Deposit of the said amount. The fact remains that the Borrower did not deposit the amount.

3.5 On the same day i.e., 14th December 2017, DRT passed an interim order in S.A. No. 1476 of 2017, thereby refusing to interfere with the sale of the scheduled properties which was to be conducted on that very day. The Borrower had also filed an interlocutory application being I.A. No. 3446 of 2017, thereby praying for stay of further proceedings qua the auction of the scheduled properties, wherein DRT directed the Respondent-Bank not to confirm the sale of the scheduled properties subject to the Borrower depositing 30% of the outstanding dues as claimed for in the Auction Sale Notice in two equal installments. The first installment of 15% amount was to be deposited within a week from the date of the said order, and the second inst