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Judgment
(per Hon’ble Sri Justice Tuhin Kumar Gedela)
Declaring the action of the respondents in proceeding with the e-auction scheduled to be held on 23.10.2026 pursuant to the Intended Sale Notice dated 23.09.2026, without following the procedure contemplated under law, as illegal and arbitrary, the present writ petition is filed.
Heard Ms. Sudheshna Yakkala, learned counsel for the petitioners and Sri O. Uday Kumar Sarma, learned Standing Counsel for the respondent Bank.
Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the e-auction pursuant to the sale notice is scheduled to be held today, i.e., on 23.10.2026, and that, ventilating their grievance, the petitioners/borrowers have already approached the learned Debts Recovery Tribunal by filing S.A. No. 724 of 2026 along with an application seeking stay of the auction proceedings. Further, learned counsel placed on record the office order bearing F.No.2/6/DRAT/Kol/2022/901, dated 15.10.2026, stating that the Presiding Officer for the learned Debts Recovery Tribunal (DRT), Visakhapatnam, is on leave from 19.10.2026 to 23.10.2026. The said office order is taken on record.
The issue involved in the present case is required to be examined by the learned Debts Recovery Tribunal, being the competent forum under Section 17 of the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002 (for brevity “the Act”).
For better adjudication of the matter, Section 17(5)(6) of the Act reads as follows:
“5)Any application made under sub-section (1) shall be dealt with by the Debts Recovery Tribunal as expeditiously as possible and disposed of within sixty days from the date of such application:
Provided that the Debts Recovery Tribunal may, from time to time, extend the said period for reasons to be recorded in writing, so, however, that the total period of pendency of the application with the Debts Recovery Tribunal, shall not exceed four months from the date of making of such application made under sub-section (1).
(6)If the application is not disposed of by the Debts Recovery Tribunal within the period of four months as specified in sub-section (5), any party to the application may make an application, in such form as may be prescribed, to the Appellate Tribunal for directing the Debts Recovery Tribunal for expeditious disposal of the application pending before the Debts Recovery Tribunal and the Appellate Tribunal may, on such application, make an order for expeditious disposal of the pending application by the Debts Recovery Tribunal.”
Considering the urgency ventilated and the fact that the e-auction is scheduled to be held today, we are of the prima-facie opinion that the interest of justice would be served by directing the learned DRT to dispose of the Stay application filed along with S.A.No.724 of 2026, in accordance with the Section 17 of the SARFAESI Act, within a period of two (02) weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. Till such time, the respondents shall maintain status-quo in all respects in respect of the property mentioned in the writ affidavit and in the sale notice.
With the above observation, the Writ Petition is disposed of. There shall be no order as to costs.