NSEL defaulters told to transfer title deeds of attached properties

The Monitoring and Auction Committee (MAC) constituted by the Forward Markets Commission (FMC) to oversee recovery of money from defaulters on dues to the National Spot Exchange (NSEL), has ordered the latter to transfer title deeds of their attached immovable properties.

After their transfer to NSEL, these will be auctioned to recover the money. It needs to recover Rs 5,300 crore in dues from 22 borrowers.

NSEL is currently negotiating with the Mohan India Group, the second largest borrower and defaulter with dues of Rs 881 crore, seeking payment of stamp duty of the attached properties. Mohan India has given NSEL a power of attorney for two large properties attached by the city police's economic offences wing (EOW).

Earlier, Mohan India had agreed to pay Rs 771 crore but had again defaulted. After which, NSEL filed a court application for the sale of properties. The court had upheld the settlement agreement and ordered a weekly compliance report. EOW had attached the properties of Mohan India and its promoters worth Rs 494.6 crore. The enforcement directorate attached property worth another Rs 150 crore but the high court (HC) here had stayed it.

ARK Imports owes Rs 719 crore and EOW attached its properties worth Rs 600 crore. According to NSEL sources, ARK promoter Kailash Aggarwal has agreed to give the power of attorney and transfer the title deeds for these properties to NSEL. He'd proposed to sign a settlement agreement with NSEL at Rs 470 crore but NSEL insisted on at least Rs 620 crore.

With dues of Rs 253 crore, Lotus Refineries' director Arun Kumar Sharma is in the process of filing an application at the HC. Other defaulters are also queing before NSEL to proceed with settlement.

The exchange has completed financial closure for e-gold investors, transferring Rs 154.8 crore to 23,267 investors at an average of Rs 2,909 a unit against the current price of Rs 2,700 a unit. The exchange also made a remittance towards 70.5 per cent of e-silver investors amounting to Rs 97.3 crore, benefiting 16,188 unit holders directly. The process of financial closure of the remaining 29.52 per cent of e-silver, platinum and other base metals put together, amounting to Rs 55 crore, will be completed soon, said Uttam Prakash Agarwal, chairman of MAC and a former head of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.