JSW wins Bhushan back in SC review

In a win for JSW Steel Ltd, the Supreme Court has approved the company’s ₹19,700 crore plan to take over bankrupt Bhushan Power and Steel Ltd (BPSL), marking the end of one of India’s longest-running insolvency battles.

- Krishna Yadav & Dipali Banka

The court rejected a challenge from dissenting creditors, saying the decisions of the committee of creditors (CoC) must be respected under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

A special bench led by Chief Justice B.R. Gavai, along with Justices Satish Chandra Sharma and K. Vinod Chandran, noted that JSW Steel has made BPSL profitable and upheld earlier approvals by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).

The bench had reserved its order on 11 August after hearing the case again following review pleas filed by JSW Steel and lenders against the Supreme Court’s 2 May ruling, which had quashed the resolution plan and ordered liquidation. That decision forced lenders to return ₹19,350 crore already paid by JSW Steel and put nearly ₹34,000 crore of bank debt at risk.

On 31 July, the bench recalled that order, citing potential misapplication of IBC principles, reliance on factual inaccuracies, and consideration of arguments not raised earlier.