Observing that the Presiding Officer of Debt Recovery Tribunal-I of Hyderabad was frequently ignoring infractions committed by banks and financial institutions, the Telangana High Court had suggested to the Centre to initiate action against the presiding officer.
Delivering verdict in two writ petitions filed by a poultry farm owner from Warangal over the auctioning of his mortgaged 2-acre agricultural land by a bank, the HC noted that it had come across several orders passed by the presiding officer without following the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Securities Interest (SARFAESI) Act. “Unfortunately, the Presiding Officer of the Debt Recovery Tribunal-I does not seem to be well versed with the provisions of the Act and the rules made there under…” a division bench comprising Justice M.S. Ramchander Rao and Justice K. Lakshman said in the judgment.
The bench noted that the presiding officer seems to be having an inherent bias in favour of the financial institutions and banks and ‘prejudice against the borrowers’. The bench said the judgment copy would be sent to the Union Ministry of Finance to take note of its observations and initiate appropriate action against the presiding officer. The bench set aside the the tribunal’s order giving possession of the mortgaged land of the petitioner to the bank. It also set aside the Warangal Chief Judicial Magistrate order directing the advocate commissioner to take possession of the mortgaged property.
However, the bench made it clear that the bank was free to initiate steps to recover the loan amount given by it to the petitioner through appropriate forum.
