NCLT Admits Insolvency Plea Against Landmark Motels Over Rs 46.62 Crore Default
The National Company Law Tribunal has admitted insolvency proceedings against Landmark Motels and Travels Pvt. Ltd. after determining that the hotel company committed a financial default. The ruling came on a petition filed by ASREC India Limited, which claimed an outstanding default amount of Rs 46.62 crore. The underlying loans were secured by several immovable properties belonging to Landmark Motels in Andheri and Versova.
Alongside admitting the insolvency petition, the tribunal dismissed an interlocutory application submitted by Landmark Motels that sought a stay on the proceedings.
According to the case details, the financial facilities were originally extended to Landmark Motels by the State Bank of India and DHFL. The loans were subsequently taken over by Indian Bank and later assigned to ASREC under an Assignment Agreement dated February 28, 2025.
During the proceedings, Landmark Motels contested the default date. The company argued that its loan accounts had been restructured in March 2020, with repayment obligations under the restructured facilities commencing only in September 2020. It claimed that any subsequent default fell within the Covid-19 protection period outlined under Section 10A of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.
The NCLT rejected the company's contentions, noting that the accounts had initially become overdue on November 30, 2019, when Landmark Motels failed to meet its repayment obligations. The tribunal held that the restructuring itself demonstrated prior default and existing financial stress, which was not wiped out by the revised terms.
Finding that an unpaid financial debt existed and that all statutory conditions were met, the NCLT admitted ASREC's Section 7 petition to initiate the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process. The tribunal clarified that while the exact amount of default will be quantified by the Interim Resolution Professional, it was satisfied that the default exceeded the threshold of Rs 1 crore.
