JUDGMENT

Rajiv Shakdher, J.(Oral)--The core grievance of the petitioners is that respondent No.2, which is a non-banking financial company, has imposed foreclosure charges qua its loan account without appreciating the fact that a proprietorship concern does not, in law, have an existence separate from its owner who is an individual.

1.1. More specifically, the petitioners contend that the imposition of foreclosure charges is in contravention to the provisions of the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Circular dated 14.7.2014 (hereafter referred to as `Circular'). It is, important, therefore, to set forth the relevant extract of the Circular:

"....2. As a measure of customer protection and also in order to bring in uniformity with regard to prepayment of various loans by borrowers of banks and NBFCs, it is advised that NBFCs shall not charge foreclosure charges/pre-payment penalties on all floating rate term loans sanctioned to individual borrower with immediate effect."

2. The respondents resist the petition. RBI's stand as propounded by its counsel Mr. Ramesh Babu is that since the petitioners are carrying on business, via the proprietorship concern, the foreclosure charges will hav