RCIL plan declared unimplementable as creditors weigh options

Reliance Communications Infrastructure Limited's approved resolution plan was declared unimplementable by the National Company Law Tribunal on August 21, 2026, leaving RCIL's erstwhile committee of creditors voting, as of October 21, 2026, on a conditional proposal to infuse up to Rs 19 crore or re-run the corporate insolvency resolution process.

Why was RCIL's approved resolution plan declared unimplementable?

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) declared RCIL's plan unimplementable through orders dated August 21, 2026, in I.A. No. 5231 of 2025 and I.A. No. 56 of 2026. The filing does not give the Tribunal's detailed reasons, but says it directed the erstwhile resolution professional to convene the erstwhile committee of creditors (CoC) to take note of the position and decide the future course in its commercial wisdom.

The declaration changes the position created by RCIL's earlier plan approval. RCIL, a wholly owned subsidiary of the corporate debtor, was admitted to the insolvency resolution process during the year ended March 31, 2020, and Anish Niranjan Nanavaty was appointed its resolution professional through an NCLT order dated September 25, 2019.

The erstwhile CoC had approved a plan submitted by Reliance Projects & Property Management Services Limited. The resolution professional submitted that plan to the NCLT under Section 30(6) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 on August 31, 2021; the application was heard on October 17, 2023 and approved on December 19, 2023. The August 2026 order means the approved plan did not proceed to implementation.

What are RCIL creditors voting on now?

RCIL's erstwhile CoC was voting on two agendas when the applications were last listed on October 21, 2026. The first was whether to concur with the successful resolution applicant's proposal to infuse up to Rs 19 crore, subject to that applicant's conditions, including unanimous consent from all financial creditors and an NCLT application seeking remand of the plan to the erstwhile CoC.

That first proposal requires 100% approval, according to the filing. The document does not disclose the successful resolution applicant's conditions, the voting outcome, or whether all financial creditors had supported the proposed up-to-Rs 19 crore infusion as of October 21, 2026.

The second agenda was to re-run RCIL's corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP). This route would authorise the erstwhile resolution professional to seek the NCLT's concurrence to restart the process, and requires 66% approval from the erstwhile CoC rather than unanimous approval.

The alternatives differ in both voting threshold and procedural route. A unanimous vote would support a conditional infusion and remand application, while a 66% vote would allow the erstwhile resolution professional to seek permission for a fresh CIRP; the filing does not state which option, if either, was likely to receive approval.

What litigation is connected to RCIL's resolution process?

RCIL's resolution process also includes litigation involving the assignment of a Reliance Bhutan Limited loan to dissenting financial creditors. IDBI Bank Limited filed I.A. No. 2708 of 2025 against the erstwhile resolution professional, the successful resolution applicant and Bank of Baroda, and challenged that assignment before the NCLT, which allowed and disposed of the application on October 10, 2025.

Bank of Baroda appealed the October 2025 NCLT order through Company Appeal (AT) (Ins) No. 1708 of 2025. The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) upheld the NCLT order and dismissed the appeal on December 23, 2025, according to the filing.

Bank of Baroda then approached the Supreme Court through Diary Number 3755 of 2026. The filing states that the appeal was tentatively listed on November 26, 2026, but does not say that this Supreme Court proceeding caused the NCLT's August 21, 2026 declaration that RCIL's plan was unimplementable.

The litigation instead shows that the loan-assignment issue remained unresolved after the December 19, 2023 approval of RCIL's plan. It is a separate legal matter from the two creditor-voting agendas disclosed at the October 21, 2026 NCLT listing, although both affect the wider resolution context.

When will RCIL's creditors and the NCLT act next?

The next disclosed NCLT date for RCIL was November 16, 2026. At the October 21, 2026 hearing, the erstwhile resolution professional sought a four-week adjournment because voting on both agendas was continuing, and the Bench adjourned the matter after recording those submissions.

The purpose of the adjournment was to allow the erstwhile CoC to complete its voting and, if required, allow the erstwhile resolution professional to file an application to re-run the CIRP. The filing does not disclose a deadline for the vote, a distribution estimate, an asset valuation, or a timetable for implementing either the infusion proposal or a restarted process.

RCIL's stated milestones are distinct from other insolvency matters involving the corporate debtor and group entities. For RCIL, the filing identifies the September 25, 2019 appointment of its resolution professional, the December 19, 2023 plan approval, the August 21, 2026 unimplementability order, the October 21, 2026 voting update and the November 16, 2026 adjourned hearing.

Conclusion

RCIL has moved from an NCLT-approved plan dated December 19, 2023 to a position in which that plan was declared unimplementable on August 21, 2026. Its erstwhile CoC now has two disclosed routes: unanimously support a conditional infusion of up to Rs 19 crore and seek remand, or approve a CIRP re-run with at least 66% support.

The immediate item to watch is the November 16, 2026 NCLT hearing, after the erstwhile CoC was given time to complete voting. Bank of Baroda's Supreme Court matter, tentatively listed for November 26, 2026, is a separate pending issue concerning the Reliance Bhutan Limited loan assignment, while the filing leaves the voting outcome unresolved.