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The Division Bench of Mr Justice K.J. Sengupta and Mr Justice J. Bagchi of Calcutta High Court on Thursday asked the Single Bench-appointed liquidator to function as a “special officer” for the assets of Dunlop India Ltd.
The Division Bench directed the special officer to report back next Thursday.
According to law experts, this was some reprieve for Dunlop, which moved an appeal against the appointment of a provisional liquidator for its assets.
A court-appointed special officer has a restricted mandate vis-à-vis assets of a company against which winding up proceedings are on. “Special officer's principal role is to take stock of the situation, including assets, and report to the court,” explained a top city lawyer.
A liquidator, on the other hand, is allowed to take control of all the company's assets for settling claims.
Dunlop India, earlier this week informed the BSE that in a case (Madura Coats Ltd vs. Dunlop India Ltd), Mr Justice Sanjib Banerjee of Calcutta High Court ordered on March 26, 2012, appointed “the official liquidator as provisional liquidator over the company”.
According to the last disclosures related to Dunlop's accounts to the BSE (as on March 31, 2011), it had unsecured loans of around Rs 272 crore and secured loans worth Rs 48 crore in its books.
According to trade union sources, as the company went in appeal against the Single Bench order, no High Court-appointed official visited Dunlop's Sahagunj factory in West Bengal on Thursday.
Workers of the closed unit (since last October) had gathered at the gate in anticipation of a visit by the “liquidator”.
Workers of the Dunlop's Ambattur unit, which was closed early this year, did not, however, have that expectation, union sources said.
Interestingly, Rs 10 Dunlop stock on the BSE moved up around 6 per cent to finish at Rs 9.79 with 44,000 shares changing hand.
Falcon to convert loan into equity
Dunlop India Group company Falcon Tyres Ltd has decided to issue over 4 crore shares of Rs 5 each on preferential basis at Rs 33.20 a share (including a premium of Rs 28.20 a share) to convert loan of Rs 1,44,04,49,993.
On Wednesday, the Falcon board proposed the conversion and fixed an extra-ordinary general meeting of the shareholders on April 26.
The Rs 5 Falcon stock closed marginally in the green at Rs 29.35.
However, 2.59 lakh shares were traded on the BSE.
>jayanta_mallick@thehindu.co.in
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