Supreme Court Stays NCLAT Order Allowing NBCC To Take Over Stalled Housing Projects Of Supertech

The Supreme Court on Friday (February 22) stayed the NCLAT order allowing National Building Constructions Corporation (India) Limited to take over pending projects of real-estate giant Supertech Limited. The Court also directed stakeholders to submit alternative proposals for the completion of projects. 

The bench of CJI Sanjiv Khanna and Justices Sanjay Kumar and KV Viswanathan was hearing a challenge to the order of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) which approved NBCC (India) Ltd.'s proposal to complete 16 incomplete projects of Supertech Limited.  

NBCC had filed an application to undertake the Projects of M/s. Supertech Limited (“Corporate Debtor”), in the pending insolvency proceedings by Union Bank of India, against M/s. Supertech Limited, a real-estate Company engaged in the construction of various housing Projects in Noida, Greater Noida, and other cities of the country.

Notably, over 50,000 homebuyers have been waiting for possession of their homes, many of whom have faced financial hardships due to delays.

The bench, while staying the operation of the impugned order, noted that the primary issue to be considered here was whether NCLAT handed over the projects to NBCC as per the procedure laid down under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016.

The Court directed all the stakeholders such as the corporate guarantors, Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) and Corporate Debtor's promoter- RK Arora to submit any alternative proposals by March 21. 

Sr Advocates Shyam Divan and Dhruv Mehta appearing for the Corporate Guarantors mainly stressed that NCLAT did not provide a fair opportunity for others to submit their proposals.  The secured creditors also submitted that NBCC's plan did not provide for any clarity on repaying dues. Counsels for YEIDA argued that the NCLAT directions were silent on the issue of repayment of pending dues to the landowning authorities. 

What Was The NCLAT Order About? 

As per the December 12 order of NCLAT, the bench of Justice Ashok Bhushan (Chairperson) and Barun Mitra (Technical Member) observed that NBCC cannot be exempted from complying with statutory requirements, including the RERA Act. The Tribunal referred to the judgment in Bikram Chatterji & Ors. v. Union of India, which laid down that public trust doctrine calls for the State and its functionaries to take affirmative action for effective management.

The Tribunal observed that Homebuyers who had made substantial payments for units in various projects are entitled to recover only the unpaid dues as per the Builder Buyers Agreement. It clarified that there shall be no additional cost imposed on the Homebuyers for completion, except the outstanding dues. The Tribunal also noted that the completion of projects must be funded by the unsold inventory, receivables from Homebuyers, and funding from NBCC.

The Tribunal further directed that:

(1) Homebuyers will not bear additional costs beyond their Builder Buyer Agreements;

(2) Quality construction will be prioritized, with third-party audits conducted by reputable institutions​; 

(3) Projects must be completed within 12 to 36 months 

Case Details : YAMUNA EXPRESSWAY INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY Versus NBCC (INDIA) LIMITED AND ORS.| C.A. No. 2240/2025 and connected matters