Real judgements, distilled

Legal Case Shots

Court judgements broken down into the case type, how the decision played out, and the lesson worth remembering, with the full judgement available as a PDF.

Frequently asked questions

Is this suitable for use in legal research and court filings?+

Legal Case Shots is built to help you quickly identify and understand relevant precedent. For citation in pleadings or filings, always verify against the full judgment PDF and current citation format (e.g., 2026 INSC ___).

How is a "lesson learnt" different from the judgment's holding?+

The holding is what the court legally decided. The lesson learnt translates that into a practical takeaway: what a lawyer should factor into case strategy or client advice as a result of this precedent.

Is the full judgment available, or just a summary?+

Both. Each case shows a distilled summary (case type, key holding, and lesson learnt) and links to the full judgment as a PDF for when you need the complete text for research or citation.

Can I filter judgments by date or case type?+

Yes. Use Advanced Filters to narrow results by decision date and by practice area, including Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Service & Administrative Law, Family Law, Civil Property & Inheritance, and Labour & Industrial Law.

Can I search judgments by a specific judge?+

Yes. You can filter judgments by the judge or bench that decided the case, which is useful for tracking how a particular judge has reasoned on similar issues across multiple rulings.

What is Legal Case Shots?+

Legal Case Shots is a searchable database of Supreme Court of India judgments, each broken down into the case type, the court's key holding, and a practical lesson learnt, with the full judgment available as a PDF for citation or deeper reading.

Company & Insolvency LawSupreme Court of India

Tata Steel Ltd. v. Raj Kumar Banerjee

Civil Appeal · 2025 INSC 639Decided 7 May 2025
C.A. No.-000408 - 2023
Justice J.B. Pardiwala · Justice R. Mahadevan

Background

Tata Steel Ltd. was the successful resolution applicant whose plan to take over Rohit Ferro-Tech Limited (the corporate debtor) was approved by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on 7 April 2022. A minority shareholder of the debtor company, Raj Kumar Banerjee, wanted to challenge that approval and filed an appeal before the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), but did so beyond the 30-day limitation period set by Section 61(2) of the IBC and even beyond the extra 15-day condonable grace period the law allows for genuine delay. The NCLAT nonetheless condoned the delay, reasoning that the last filing date fell on a Saturday which it treated as a holiday, extending the calculation in the shareholder's favour. Tata Steel appealed this condonation order to the Supreme Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that a working Saturday (this being the first Saturday of the month, when the tribunal registry remains open) does not count as a holiday for computing limitation, so the NCLAT's extended calculation of the deadline was incorrect, and the shareholder's appeal was filed after even the maximum permissible 45 days (30 plus 15). Relying on its own binding precedent, the Court reiterated that the IBC's timelines are strict and mandatory by design: the NCLAT simply has no power to condone delay beyond the 15-day grace period, regardless of the reason, because doing so would undermine the IBC's core purpose of speedy and certain insolvency resolution. The NCLAT's order condoning the delay was therefore set aside, and Tata Steel's appeal was allowed.

Lesson Learnt

In time-sensitive statutory processes like insolvency resolution, missing even a single day beyond the law's explicit limitation and grace periods can be fatal to an appeal. Courts and tribunals cannot use equitable discretion to extend deadlines that Parliament has deliberately made rigid.

Tata Steel Ltd. v. Raj Kumar Banerjee – Legal Case Shots | LegalAware