Willis Lease Finance not an operational creditor: SpiceJet

SpiceJet claimed in the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on Friday that the insolvency petition filed by aircraft and engine lessor Willis Lease Finance Corporation was not maintainable since the lessor had no locus as an operational creditor to file a petition.

The senior counsel appearing for SpiceJet claimed that the lessor was neither the operational creditor nor an assignee to the leases signed between the aircraft company and lessors, and thus had no locus to file a petition. He argued that a holding company or an authorised agent had no right under law to file an insolvency petition. The counsel argued that four operational creditors - Willis Lease (Ireland) Ltd West IV Engine Ireland Ltd, West III Engine Ireland Ltd and West V Engine Ireland Ltd - could not file a combined petition as operational creditors, as had been done in this case.

The bench was hearing the plea on maintainability of the application filed under Section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016, by Willis Lease Finance to initiate a corporate insolvency resolution process against SpiceJet.