Tribunal holds that execution of conveyance deed and possession under Resolution Plan constitutes full and final settlement of all claims, dismissing homebuyers' plea to admit HRERA recovery amount as independent financial debt.
In a significant judgment dated October 5, 2026, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), New Delhi Bench, in the matter of Pankaj Gupta and Another v. Narendra Kumar Sharma, Resolution Professional of Spaze Towers Pvt. Ltd., clarified the legal position regarding the status of homebuyers as financial creditors during the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP).
The Applicants, homebuyers of Unit No. 54, Tower B-3, in the "Spaze Privy AT-4" project, had approached the Haryana Real Estate Regulatory Authority (HRERA) seeking compensation for delay in possession. HRERA issued an order dated March 15, 2022, awarding interest and compensation, followed by a Recovery Certificate for Rs. 41.8 lakhs on August 28, 2024. The Applicants filed their claim as financial creditors under Section 5(8)(f) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) during the CIRP of the Corporate Debtor initiated on October 21, 2024.
However, the Resolution Professional (RP) rejected the claim as a financial debt after the Applicants executed a registered conveyance deed on May 29, 2025, and took possession on June 2, 2025, during the CIRP. The RP's stance was that the conveyance deed constituted full and final settlement of all claims under the terms of the approved Resolution Plan, which expressly provided that no further monetary or other claims would survive upon registration of the conveyance deed.
The Applicants contended that their HRERA adjudicated claim was independent and could not be extinguished by the conveyance deed, especially since it was executed under protest. They further argued that the RP's earlier representation before the Tribunal to treat their claims in accordance with law amounted to an undertaking, which should be binding.
The Tribunal examined the factual matrix and legal provisions closely. It emphasized that the execution of the conveyance deed and acceptance of possession during CIRP are material events. The Resolution Plan clause 5.1.6.11.4 clearly stipulates that registration of the conveyance deed constitutes full and final settlement of claims against the Corporate Debtor.
The Tribunal held that while the HRERA order and Recovery Certificate might confer decree-holder status under Section 3(10) of the IBC, the resulting claim is not a financial debt within the meaning of Section 5(8)(f). Therefore, the claim does not qualify for separate admission as a financial creditor's claim outside the Resolution Plan.
Further, the Tribunal declined to allow an individual homebuyer to challenge or alter the class-based treatment of claims approved by the Committee of Creditors (CoC). The comparison with other homebuyers who had not executed conveyance deeds was found irrelevant due to the materially different factual position of the Applicants.
The Tribunal also noted that the withdrawal of the earlier interim application based on the RP's representation did not create any subsisting operative order binding the RP to admit the claim independently.
In conclusion, the NCLT dismissed the Applicants' application, affirming that the registered conveyance deed and possession under the Resolution Plan extinguish any independent claim arising from HRERA orders. The Applicants, therefore, cannot seek recognition or payment of the HRERA recovery amount as a financial debt in the CIRP.
This judgment underscores the binding nature of Resolution Plans in CIRP and clarifies that once a conveyance deed is executed under a Resolution Plan, it amounts to final settlement, barring separate claims by homebuyers, even if such claims are adjudicated by regulatory authorities like HRERA.
Bottom Line:
Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 - Homebuyer who executed registered conveyance deed and obtained possession during CIRP cannot thereafter seek separate admission of HRERA recovery amount as Financial Debt dehors Resolution Plan - Resolution Plan clause providing that registration of conveyance deed amounts to full and final settlement of all claims is binding - Individual homebuyer cannot seek treatment contrary to approved class-based resolution framework.
Statutory provision(s):
Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, Sections 5(8)(f), 30(2), 31, 60(5); CIRP Regulations; HRERA Act provisions as applicable.
Pankaj Gupta v. Narendra Kumar Sharma, (NCLT)(New Delhi Bench) : Law Finder Doc Id # 3004082
