New Delhi: The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has dismissed an appeal filed by Vedanta Limited challenging the acceptance of Adani Enterprises Limited’s resolution plan for the debt-laden Jaiprakash Associates Limited, holding that the Committee of Creditors (CoC) was justified in rejecting Vedanta’s resolution plan.
A bench comprising Chairperson Justice (Retd.) Ashok Bhushan and Technical Member Barun Mitra delivered the verdict on 04.05.2026.
Jaiprakash Associates Limited was admitted into the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) by the Allahabad Bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on 03.06.2024, on a petition filed by ICICI Bank. The company faced admitted claims exceeding ₹57,000 crore, with the National Asset Reconstruction Company Limited emerging as the largest financial creditor, holding over 85 per cent voting share in the CoC.
The CoC comprised 27 members, including banks, financial institutions, and a class of homebuyers. A total of 28 expressions of interest were received during the process, of which 25 prospective resolution applicants were shortlisted. Ultimately, six bidders submitted resolution plans: Adani Enterprises Limited, Vedanta Limited, Dalmia Cement (Bharat) Limited, Jindal Power Limited, PNC Infratech Private Limited, and Jaypee Infratech Limited. Adani Enterprises and Vedanta emerged as the frontrunners.
Following an independent evaluation, Adani’s plan ranked higher, particularly on parameters such as upfront recovery and overall financial value. In its 23rd meeting held in November 2025, the CoC approved Adani Enterprises’ resolution plan with a 93.81 per cent voting share.
After the conclusion of the challenge process, Vedanta submitted an addendum to its resolution plan on 08.11.2025. The CoC declined to consider this submission, citing the bidding framework, which prohibited post-process modifications of financial proposals. The CoC maintained that the addendum was submitted only after Vedanta became aware that its upfront offer was lower than that of the successful resolution applicant.
Vedanta challenged the CoC’s decision, alleging a lack of transparency in the process and contending that its revised offer, pegged at ₹16,070 crore, provided greater value to creditors.
In March 2025, the NCLAT refused to halt the implementation of Adani’s resolution plan. Vedanta then approached the Supreme Court, which dismissed its plea but introduced a safeguard, observing that if the monitoring committee or those implementing the plan proposed to take any major policy decision, they must seek prior leave of the NCLAT. The Supreme Court also directed the NCLAT to hear the case expeditiously, leading to the verdict delivered today.
The NCLAT ultimately dismissed Vedanta’s appeal, upholding the CoC’s decision to approve Adani Enterprises’ resolution plan and reject Vedanta’s plan.
Case Details:
- Case Title: Vedanta Limited v. Bhuvan Madan & Ors.
- Tribunal: National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT)
- Bench: Justice (Retd.) Ashok Bhushan, Chairperson, and Barun Mitra, Technical Member
- Date of Order: 04.05.2026
Appearances:
- For Vedanta: Senior Advocate Abhijeet Sinha with Advocates Deep Roy, Anuj Lakhotiya, Aridaman Raghav, Heena Kochar, Bhavit Baxi, Shrishti Agnihotri, Rishi Badraj, Aditya Narayan Sharma, Sourabh Goyal, and Abhishek
- For the Resolution Professional: Senior Advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Arun Kathpalia with Advocates Anoop Rawat, Sagar Dhawan, Vaijayant Paliwal, Aditya Marwah, Nikhil Mathur, Ahkam Khan, Rashi Sharma, and Kirti Gupta from Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas
- For the Committee of Creditors: Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Senior Advocate Niranjan Reddy with Advocates Bishwajit Dubey, Madhav Kanoriya, Srideepa Bhattacharyya, Neha Shivhare, Rajeshwari Mukherjee, and Anoushka Chauhan
- For Adani Enterprises: Senior Advocate Ritin Rai with Advocates Sandeep Singhi, Ruby S. Ahuja, Seema Sundd, Rituraj Srivastava, Ravneet Kaur Malik, and Shruti Pandey from Karanjawala & Co.; Abhishek Swaroop, Partner, Saraf and Partners
