The filing of additional documents is subject to judicial discretion and should not prejudice the interests of the opposing party.

ORDER

PER: ATUL CHATURVEDI, MEMBER (TECHNICAL)

1. The Applicant has filed the present Application under Rule 11 Of The NCLT Rules, 2011 seeking the following reliefs:

(a) Allow the present application and grant permission to the Applicant to file the additional documents; and/or

(b) Pass such other and further orders as this Hon'ble Tribunal may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case and in the interest of justice.

2. SUBMISSIONS OF THE APPLICANT:

i. The Applicant seeks permission of this Adjudicating Authority to place on record the receiving's of the Tax Invoices by the Corporate Debtor. It is submitted that the Tax Invoices are already a part of the Petition filed by the OC and the same has been annexed with the petition.

ii. The reason for filing the additional documents is that the person in charge of the office of the OC had left the office around September, 2024 and the said documents could not be discovered. However, now since the OC has got hold of the documents, the same are being filed by way of the present Application.

iii. It is submitted that no prejudice would be caused to the CD as the tax invoices for which the amount is due and payable was already filed with the Section 9 petition as well as the demand notice sent to the CD.

3. SUBMISSIONS OF THE RESPONDENT:

i. The Respondent, on the other hand has raised objections to the maintainability of the present Application. It is submitted that the present Application suffers from serious procedural defects and is liable to be dismissed on this ground alone. The affidavit in support of the Application has been notarized on 27.05.2025, whereas the Application is dated 28.05.2025, thereby clearly indicating that the affidavit was executed prior to the finalization of the Application.

ii. The Memo of Parties annexed with the present Application is dated 15.04.2025, which is more than a month prior to the date of filing, and further I.A. 2736 ND OF 2025 IN CP IB 849 (ND) OF 2024 reflects procedural laxity and casualness on the part of the Operational Creditor.

iii. The present Application purports to have been filed under the "NCLT Rules, 2011 ", whereas no such rules exist.

iv. The present Application does not annex any board resolution or authorization on behalf of the Operational Creditor authorizing Mr. Vippul Mahajan to file the Application.

v. The present Application has been filed at a highly belated stage, when the matter was already listed for final arguments, and appears to be a deliberate delaying tactic adopted by the Operational Creditor in respect of a petition which is otherwise not maintainable. The documents now sought to be placed on record were admittedly within the possession of the Operational Creditor since inception, and no cogent reason has been provided for their non-filing earlier. Such conduct not only undermines the objective of a summary and time-bound process under the Code, but also amounts to an abuse of the process of this Tribunal.

vi. The Operational Creditor seeks to justify the belated filing of additional documents by referring to the alleged departure of a person from its office in September 2024. The explanation is wholly unsubstantiated and devoid of particulars, and is liable to be rejected on the following grounds:

a. The Application does not disclose the name of the person who allegedly left the employment of the Operational Creditor;

b. No resignation letter, termination record, or employee file has been annexed to demonstrate such departure;

c. No document has been placed on record to establish that the said person was in fact responsible for maintaining or handling the relevant documents;

d. The Application is completely silent as to when and under what circumstances the Operational Creditor allegedly discovered the documents now sought to be introduced; and I.A. 2736 ND OF 2025 IN CP IB