Jaiprakash Gaur, the founder of crisis-hit Jaypee group, has joined the board of Jaiprakash Associates Ltd (JAL) as an additional director.
In a regulatory filing, Jaypee group’s flagship company JAL said the “board has co-opted Jaiprakash Gaur on the board of the company as an additional director with effect from May 19, 2018.”
87-year-old Gaur holds a diploma in civil engineering from University of Roorkee (now IIT, Roorkee). He has vast experience of over 64 years in the fields of civil engineering, construction, cement, real estate, expressways, hospitality and power.
Gaur is already a director in some companies of Jaypee group, the filing said.
Debt-ridden JAL has sold bulk of its cement business to repay bank loans. Another group firm Jaypee Infratech has gone bankrupt.
Last year, NCLT had admitted an application by IDBI Bank-led consortium, seeking resolution for Jaypee Infratech under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.
The tribunal had appointed Anuj Jain as Interim Resolution Professional (IRP) to mange the company’s business. Bids were invited from investors interested in acquiring Jaypee Infratech and completing the stuck real estate projects in Noida and Greater Noida.
Consequently, Lakshadweep emerged as a front runner to acquire Jaypee Infratech with Rs 7,350 crore bid. However, earlier this month, lenders of Jaypee Infratech rejected the bid they found it inadequate.
Jaypee Infratech has an outstanding debt of nearly Rs 9,800 crore, of which Rs 4,334 crore pertains to IDBI Bank. The company is developing about 32,000 flats, of which it has delivered only 9,500.
Hassled home buyers are protesting on streets and have filed cases against Jaypee group due to significant delays in delivery of real estate projects.
The Supreme Court has recently ordered JAL to deposit additional Rs 1,000 crore in its registry by June 15. The company has already deposited Rs 750 crore with the registry and the same would be utilised to make refunds to home buyers.
Source: Press Trust of India