2024:BHC-OS:3371-DB IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION (L) NO.9943 OF 2023

1. Mr. Shiv Charan, having his address at

8-2/626/2, Sri Krishna House, Road No.10, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad - 500 034. 2. Mr. Pushpalata Bai having her address at

8-2/626/2, Sri Krishna House, Road No.10, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad - 500 034. 3. Ms. Bharti Agarwal having her address at

8-2/626/2, Sri Krishna House, Road No.10, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad - 500 034. ....Petitioners Versus

1. Adjudicating Authority under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, New Delhi.

2. Deputy Director, Directorate of Enforcement, Mumbai Zonal Office-II, Kaiser-I Hind Building, Ground Floor, Currimbhoy Road, Ballard Estate, Mumbai - 400 001. ....Respondents ALONG WITH WRIT PETITION (L) NO.29111 OF 2023 Directorate of Enforcement Government of India, Ministry of Finance Department of Revenue, 301-302, 3rd Floor, Ceejay House, Worli, Mumbai - 400 018. ....Petitioner Versus

1. Mr. Shiv Charan, Page 1 of 36 having his address at

8-2/626/2, Sri Krishna House, Road No.10, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad 500 034.

2. Mr. Pushpalata Bai, having her address at

8-2/626/2, Sri Krishna House, Road No.10, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad - 500 034. 3. Ms. Bharti Agarwal, having her address at

8-2/626/2, Sri Krishna House, Road No.10, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad - 500 034. ....Respondents Mr. Devang Vyas, ASG a/w. Mr. Ashish Chavan, Mr. Shelang Shah & Mr. Zishan Quazi, Advocates for Petitioner in WPL/29111/2023 and Respondents in WPL/9943/2023.

Mr.Vikram Nankani, Senior Advocate a/w. Mr. Mayur Khandeparkar, Ms. Akanksha Saxena, Mr.Aditya Ajgaonkar, G. Aniruth Purusothaman & Joshua Borges, Advocates for Petitioners in WPL/9943/2023 and Respondents in WPL/29111/2023.

CORAM : B. P. COLABAWALLA &

SOMASEKHAR SUNDARESAN, JJ.

Reserved on : 9^TH JANUARY , 2024 Pronounced on : 1^ST MARCH, 2024 JUDGMENT: (Per: Somasekhar Sundaresan, J.)

1. Rule. Respondents in each petition, waive service. By consent of parties, rule made returnable forthwith, and both the petitions are taken up for hearing and final disposal.

Page 2 of 36

2. The implications of Section 32A of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (for short, the "IBC, 2016") for corporate debtors and their assets, upon approval of resolutions, and indeed for enforcement agencies that have attached assets of such corporate debtors, fall for consideration in the captioned Writ Petitions. Section 32A of the IBC, 2016 provides for immunity to corporate debtors and their assets, upon approval of a resolution plan, subject to certain conditions stipulated in that provision.

Factual Matrix:

3. The case at hand involves resolution of DSK Southern Projects Private Limited ("Corporate Debtor") under the IBC, 2016. The Corporate Debtor had been subjected to a Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (“CIRP”) since 9^th December, 2021 at the instance of a financial creditor. Eventually, a resolution plan propounded by Mr. Shiv Charan, Ms. Pushpalata Bai and Ms. Bharti Agarwal ("Resolution Applicants") came to be approved by the Learned National Company Law Tribunal, Mumbai (“NCLT”) by an order dated 17^th February, 2023 (“Approval Order”) passed under Section 31 of the IBC, 2016.

4. On 20^th October, 2017 i.e. nearly four years prior to the commencement of the CIRP, various First Information Reports alleging, among others, offences of cheating and criminal breach of trust had been filed against the Corporate Debtor and its erstwhile promoters. The offences alleged, being "scheduled offences" under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (for short the "PMLA, 2002"), an Enforcement Case Information Report being ECIR/01/MBZO-II/2018 dated 8^th March, 2018 (“ECIR”) came to be filed by the Directorate of Enforcement (“ED”). The ECIR estimated the "proceeds of crime" to be in the order of Rs. 8,522.27 crores. Pursuant to the ECIR, an “original complaint” being O.C.No.1104/2019 came to be filed