The nature of power under Section 14 of the Act is executory and ministerial in nature and not adjudicatory.

JUDGMENT :

Tarlok Singh Chauhan, J.

Since common question of law arises for consideration in all these writ petitions, therefore, the same are taken up together for hearing and are being disposed of by common reasoning.

2. The moot question that arises for consideration, in all these petitions, is the nature of power exercisable by the District Magistrate in application(s) filed by the Bank or Financial Institutions under Section 14 of the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest 2002 (for short, the Act).

3. The undisputed facts are that the borrowers availed of various financial assistance from the petitioner-Bank by mortgaging their immovable properties. However, the borrowers failed to repay the loan amount, as a result whereof, their loan accounts were classified as non performing assets (NPA). The petitioner-Bank thereafter issued notices under Section 13(2) and 13(4) of the Act to the borrowers, but to no avail, constraining the petitioner-Bank to file application(s) under Section 14 of the Act seeking assistance in taking over possession of the secured assets. However, prior to the aforesaid application(s), the borrowers being aware of the proceedings filed caveat petition(s) before the District Magistrate in respect of order of delivery of possession and the District Magistrate started hearing the borrowers and directed the petitioner-bank to supply documents to borrowers. Hence, the instant petitions.

4. The respondent-District Magistrate has contested the petitions by filing replies, wherein common defence has been taken to the effect that on examination of the case files, it was noticed that the borrowers in their respective representations filed under Section 13(3A) of the Act had raised objections that classification of their accounts as NPAs was not in accordance with statutory guidelines of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and that the petitioner-Bank had wrongly clubbed the liability of other independent and distinct entities, as a result of which their accounts turned NPAs. In view of this, in order to satisfy the contents of the affidavit(s), the authorized officer of the petitioner-Bank was directed to submit the relevant record in this regard. Direction given to the authorized officer was purely an administrative direction with a view to assess the record so that the contents of the affidavit(s) could be satisfied.

It is in this background that the question, as formulated above, arises for consideration.

5. However, in order to determine the question, it shall be apt firstly to reproduce section 14 of the Act, which reads as under:-

Section 14. Chief Metropolitan Magistrate or District Magistrate to assist secured creditor in taking possession of secured asset.

(1) Where the possession of any secured assets is required to be taken by the secured creditor or if any of the secured assets is required to be sold or transferred by the secured creditor under the provisions of this Act, the secured creditor may, for the purpose of taking possession or control of any such secured assets, request, in writing, the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate or the District Magistrate within whose jurisdiction any such secured asset or other documents relating thereto may be situated or found, to take possession thereof, and the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate or as the case may be, the District Magistrate shall, on such request being made to him-

(a) take possession of such asset and documents relating thereto; and

(b) forward such asset and documents to the secured creditor:

1[Provided that any application by the secured creditor shall be accompanied by an affidavit duly affirmed by the authorised officer of the secured creditor, declaring that-

(i) the aggregate amount of financial assistance granted and the total claim of the Bank as on the date of filing the application;

(ii) the borrower has created security interest over various properties and that the Bank or Financial Institution is holdin