In a statement issued by his office on Sunday, Chandra said his own borrowing was “₹0” and that the ₹22,000 crore figure referred to personal guarantees he had given for loans taken by other entities linked to the group.
Of the ₹22,000 crore in personal guarantees, about ₹4,800 crore were given when the underlying funds were borrowed, while the remaining guarantees were signed after defaults had occurred, according to the statement.
The clarification comes amid a raging debate over the ₹22,006 crore of claims admitted against Chandra in his capacity as a personal guarantor. Under the repayment plan approved by the National Company Law Tribunal (), Chandra is to pay ₹6.25 crore personally, while the principal borrowing entities are to pay about ₹1,494 crore.
Chandra’s office said 10 banks and financial institutions, including , HDFC Group, Group and , had disbursed ₹4,808 crore to promoter-linked entities. Of this, ₹3,803 crore had been repaid, leaving a balance of about ₹998 crore, it said.
The lenders, however, had filed claims totalling ₹5,311 crore, against a payable amount of ₹998 crore, according to the statement. After accounting for ₹1,049 crore in settled or paid claims, the remaining claims stood at ₹4,262 crore.
The statement said the latter figure differed from an earlier figure of ₹3,992 crore because certain accounts were excluded as the concerned creditors had neither voted for nor against the repayment plan.
Chandra’s office also said group entities had borrowings from foreign funds, domestic funds, non-banking financial companies and corporates, and that “most of these were or are being settled by the borrowers”. The remaining dues either had adequate assets backing them or would be paid, it said.
Chandra said he hoped lenders would engage directly with the borrowers, reconcile their accounts and recover the amounts due from them.
Several lenders, including and , have opposed the NCLT-approved repayment plan and are considering appeals before the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).
The Delhi chapter of NCLT approved the plan following a split verdict between two members of the original bench, with the matter subsequently being referred to a third member. The Committee of Creditors (CoC) approved the plan with 80.8% of the voting share.
Separately, IDBI Trusteeship Services questioned the inclusion of votes cast by certain creditors, alleging that Veena Investments Pvt Ltd and its subsidiaries, including Direct Media Distribution Ventures Pvt Ltd and World Crest Advisors LLP, fell within the category of associate parties.
Insolvency proceedings against Chandra date back to 2022, when Indiabulls Housing Finance approached the NCLT against him as a personal guarantor for corporate loans.
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