On Monday, the Supreme Court adjourned the loan moratorium case until October 5, giving the Center, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the banks more time to work together and present a concrete response on their position on the waiver of interest charged during the moratorium period. .
The Center’s Attorney General Tushar Mehta presented in court that the government is at a very advanced stage in its decision-making process. He looked for a little more time to record the full details of the actions that the government should take, considering all sectors on the issue of the credit default.
He also apologized for the delay and said, “Some things are out of my control.”
Lead attorney Rajiv Dutta, representing the petitioner, opposed the postponement and argued that the case be heard and listed as soon as possible.
However, the high court headed by Judge Ashok Bhushan took into account Mehta’s submissions and allowed the request that more time is needed for decisions to be recorded.
The high court bench, which also included Justices R. Subhash Reddy and MR Shah, was hearing a batch of petitions seeking a waiver of interest, or waiver of interest on interest, on EMIs suspended during the extended moratorium period in middle of the national shutdown due to covid. -19 outbreak.
On September 10, the court had given the Center, the RBI and the banks two weeks time to work together and present a concrete response on their position on the exemption of interest charged during the loan moratorium and related issues. The court also ordered a provisional extension of the loan moratorium until September 28, ordering banks not to label any loans as delinquent until new orders are issued.
Furthermore, the court noted in its order that a committee of experts had been formed to examine all the issues and that the government will take action.
On September 3, the court approved a provisional order holding that accounts not declared as non-performing assets (ANP) as of August 31 will not be declared as ANP until new orders are issued. The provisional order was extended on the last hearing date.
On May 22, the central bank extended the moratorium on term loans until August 31 amid the national blockade due to covid-19. In March, the central bank had allowed a three-month moratorium on repaying IMEs and other loans on all term loans due between March 1 and May 31.
Petitioner Gajendra Sharma presented in his argument that interest would continue to accrue during the moratorium, which the borrower would ultimately have to pay. He argued that no interest should be charged during the moratorium because people face “extreme hardship.” The petition also stated that it would be difficult to pay additional interest on top of the regular EMIs.
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