Ahmedabad, 19.12.2025 : The National Company Law Tribunal, Ahmedabad Bench, has admitted an insolvency petition filed by Gensol EV Lease Limited against Mindra EV Private Limited, holding that a corporate debtor cannot avoid insolvency proceedings by citing alleged dues from a third party or group company of the creditor.
The petition was filed under Section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, for a default amounting to ₹1.61 crore. The Bench, comprising Judicial Member Shammi Khan and Technical Member Sanjeev Sharma, observed that alleged receivables from a third party do not amount to a “pre-existing dispute” under Section 8(2)(a) of the Code.
Gensol EV Lease, which itself was admitted into insolvency in June 2025, stated that it had issued a purchase order in April 2024 to Mindra EV for the supply and installation of electric vehicle charging hubs. Pursuant to the purchase order, Gensol paid an advance of ₹2.13 crore in instalments between April and June 2024 through banking channels.
The Tribunal noted that against this advance, Mindra EV supplied charging hubs worth only ₹52.58 lakh. The balance supply was never completed, nor was the unadjusted advance of ₹1.61 crore refunded. Based on the running account statements and bank records, the Bench held that the default had crystallised on September 5, 2024.
After a statutory demand notice was issued under Section 8 of the IBC, Mindra EV did not dispute the receipt of the advance or the short supply. Instead, it claimed that it was owed around ₹1.43 crore by Blu Smart Charge Private Limited, a group company of Gensol, and attempted to rely on this alleged receivable as a defence.
Rejecting the argument, the Tribunal held that the reply only referred to alleged dues from a third party, which had no connection with the purchase order or contractual obligations between Gensol EV Lease and Mindra EV. It further noted that no dispute relating to quality, performance, delay, or refund was raised by the corporate debtor before issuance of the demand notice.
Finding that the operational debt was due and payable and that no genuine pre-existing dispute existed, the NCLT admitted the petition and initiated the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process against Mindra EV Private Limited. Rajender Pal Chandel was appointed as the Interim Resolution Professional. The Tribunal also directed the operational creditor to deposit ₹5 lakh towards initial insolvency resolution costs and declared a moratorium under Section 14 of the IBC.
