Hopes afloat for Dalmia Bharat Cement in bid to acquire Binani Cement

This comes after the Committee of Creditors on Thursday downplayed the alleged fraud by Binani's promoters, saying it was not related to the sale process

Hopes seem to have brightened for the Dalmia Bharat Group in its quest to acquire Binani Cement, after the Committee of Creditors (CoC) on Thursday downplayed the alleged fraud by Binani's promoters, saying it was not related to the sale process.

"All the details are in the data room. The fraud is nothing to do with the sale. If the offer is proper, the tribunal can consider it," a counsel on behalf of the CoC said before the NCLT, according to a source close to one of the bidders.

Resolution Professional (RP) Vijaykumar V Iyer had moved the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), alleging suspect and fraudulent transactions in Binani carried out by an independent forensic auditor.

The source said an unsecured creditor, Exim Bank, having exposure of about Rs 6.2 billion, has filed an application for maximising value in the sale.

The ramification of Exim Bank's application could not be immediately ascertained.

Ultratech Cement, another prospective bidder for Binani Cement, has offered a higher valuation of about Rs 72 billion against Rs 65 billion-66 billion bid by Dalmia Bharat.

The Kolkata bench of NCLT today heard a few applications with regard to the alleged fraud.

Lawyers associated with Binani Cement and UltraTech interpreted the tribunal's order as implying that the RP will have to respond by March 26.

Binani Group counsel said the company has also moved an application for termination of insolvency proceedings, but the same did not come up for hearing.

The next hearing has been fixed for March 27.