NCLT clears Fastway’s ₹231.5-crore plan for Quadrant Televentures; DoT’s licence dues settled under plan

The Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved Fastway Transmissions Pvt Ltd’s Rs 231.50-crore resolution plan for Quadrant Televentures Ltd, the listed fixed-line and broadband operator in the Punjab telecom circle, and held that the company’s dues to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), including licence fees, adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues, penalties and interest, stand settled in terms of the plan.

The bench of Prabhat Kumar (Member, Technical) and Sushil Mahadeorao Kochey (Member, Judicial) pronounced the order on November 3.

The plan offers Rs 231.50 crore against admitted claims of Rs 2,815.21 crore, a recovery of 8.22%. Creditors had filed claims of Rs 5,739.18 crore. The offer is 129.44% of the liquidation value of Rs 178.85 crore and 101.42% of the fair value of Rs 228.25 crore.

Aircel-RCom ruling distinguished

The tribunal held that the Supreme Court’s ruling in State Bank of India v Union of India — which arose from the insolvencies of Aircel and Reliance Communications and held that DoT dues must be cleared before telecom spectrum can be transferred — does not apply to Quadrant. That ruling, the bench said, rested mainly on the spectrum trading guidelines, which mandate clearance of all dues before any spectrum trade. Quadrant holds no spectrum, so there is no question of its transfer under the plan.

The bench acknowledged that the licence terms contemplate payment of outstanding dues before transfer or assignment, but held that “the licence terms cannot prevail over the terms of the Resolution Plan insofar as the extinguishment of outstanding dues is concerned”, as the acquirer takes over the company on a clean-slate basis.

The transfer of the licences themselves, however, will remain subject to DoT’s approval and conditions, which Fastway has agreed to comply with. Quadrant holds a Unified Licence and an Internet Service Provider (ISP) Category-A licence valid till 2035 for fixed-line voice, DSL internet and leased-line services in Punjab, Chandigarh and Panchkula. The plan is unconditional: if DoT does not approve the ISP licence transfer, Fastway may run the business under its own existing licence, according to the plan.

The operative part of the order also states that approval of the plan shall not be construed as a waiver of statutory obligations, and that any waiver sought shall be subject to approval by the authorities concerned in light of the Supreme Court’s Ghanshyam Mishra judgment. Reliefs sought in the plan but not specifically dealt with in the order are deemed rejected.

DoT’s last-minute application

After the plan approval application was reserved for orders on September 22, the Union of India, through DoT, moved an application seeking to stall approval. DoT asked the tribunal to raise its admitted licence-fee and AGR claim from Rs 270.02 crore to Rs 271.45 crore, to direct an escrow or provision of ₹416.33 crore for contingent dues pending a Supreme Court appeal, and to direct re-examination of a revised claim of Rs 878.24 crore filed on August 21, 2026.

The tribunal allowed the interest recomputation, holding that clause 20.7 of the licence agreement — under which part of a month counts as a full month for interest — is clear. It also directed the resolution professional to revise DoT’s claim to reflect the Supreme Court’s September 1, 2020 judgment, “if not done so far”.

It rejected the plea for an escrow, holding that DoT’s ₹416.33-crore claim had not crystallised on the insolvency commencement date and that its admission at a notional value of ₹1 could not be faulted. It relied on the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal’s ruling in U.P. Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd v Ashish Chhawchharia.

Government operational creditors, whose admitted claims total ₹283.16 crore, will get ₹2.83 crore, or 1% of admitted dues, under the plan.

Who gets what

Secured financial creditors will receive ₹223.58 crore against admitted claims of ₹703.55 crore, or 31.78%. Of this, ₹194.58 crore is payable within 60 days of approval and ₹29 crore within 14 months. The plan says the payout is 68.30% of the principal owed to secured lenders.

Related-party unsecured financial creditors, with admitted claims of Rs 159.85 crore, get nothing. Other operational creditors will receive Rs 2.07 crore against Rs 230.66 crore admitted, and “other debts and dues” Rs 1.52 crore against Rs 1,437.92 crore admitted. Employee dues of Rs 8.07 lakh, including gratuity, will be paid in full. CIRP costs are capped at ₹1 crore, payable at actuals.

Fastway will infuse Rs 58.16 crore as equity, with the balance coming as a loan convertible into equity.

Promoters wiped out

Quadrant’s share capital will be reduced in the ratio of 200:1. The promoters’ 1,13,26,815 shares will be cancelled for nil consideration, and public shareholders will be left with a 5% stake of 30,61,301 shares. Fastway will be allotted 5,81,64,725 shares, or 95% of the post-restructuring equity, through a preferential issue. The shares will remain listed.

The tribunal directed that the capital reduction comply with SEBI regulations and the 5% minimum public shareholding requirement.

A contested bidding round

Four resolution plans — from Areion Assets Management Pvt Ltd, Fastway Transmissions, GVN Fuels Ltd and Cyfuture India Pvt Ltd — were opened on May 26. A challenge mechanism run by the committee of creditors (CoC) on June 11 lifted the offers from ₹131 crore to ₹231.50 crore. Fastway’s revised plan was approved with 100% of the CoC’s vote in e-voting that concluded on August 12. The first Form G had drawn inadequate participation from industry players and was reissued with pan-India publication in January.

Avoidance transactions

A transaction auditor has flagged potentially avoidable transactions under sections 43 and 45 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), and clarifications were sought from the suspended board. No avoidance application has been filed before the tribunal so far. Under the plan, any recoveries from such proceedings will pass through to the secured financial creditors, net of expenses. The CoC did not approve a contribution under Regulation 39B of the CIRP regulations.

Background

The tribunal admitted Quadrant, incorporated in 1946, into insolvency on September 2, 2025, on a petition filed under section 7 of the IBC by IDBI Trusteeship Services Ltd. Atul Kumar Bansal was the first resolution professional; Rajesh Jhunjhunwala replaced him by a tribunal order of January 12, 2026. The insolvency process was extended three times, to August 28, 2026, and the plan was filed on August 27.

The plan’s effective date is the date of the tribunal’s order. A monitoring committee chaired by the resolution professional is to be formed within 15 days.

Also See: NCLT declares Videocon’s Venugopal Dhoot bankrupt over Rs 12,668-crore SBI dues