Punjab & Haryana High Court directs Deputy Commissioner to expedite SARFAESI proceedings, reaffirms 60-day statutory limit

Case Name: Axis Bank Ltd. v. M/s Dee Gee Weighing Equipments & Ors.
Date of Judgment: October 01, 2025
Citation: CWP-29600-2025
Bench: Hon’ble Mr. Justice Sheel Nagu, Chief Justice and Hon’ble Mr. Justice Sanjiv Berry

Held: The Punjab & Haryana High Court disposed of the writ petition filed by Axis Bank Ltd. by issuing a writ of mandamus to the Deputy Commissioner, Gurdaspur, directing him to decide the bank’s application under Section 14 of the SARFAESI Act, 2002 within four weeks. The Court observed that the Deputy Commissioner failed to discharge the statutory duty of acting within the maximum prescribed period of sixty days under Section 14(1) of the Act. Reaffirming the Supreme Court’s ruling in R.D. Jain & Co. v. Capital First Ltd. (2023) 1 SCC 675, the Bench emphasized that proceedings under Section 14 are ministerial in nature and time-bound, leaving no scope for delay.

Summary: Axis Bank had sanctioned a loan of ₹1.70 crore to the respondent borrower, M/s Dee Gee Weighing Equipments, which later defaulted, leading to the account being classified as a Non-Performing Asset (NPA). Following the borrowers’ failure to comply with the demand notice issued under Section 13(2) of the SARFAESI Act, the bank initiated recovery proceedings under Section 13(4) and thereafter filed an application under Section 14 before the Deputy Commissioner, Gurdaspur, on January 23, 2024. However, no action was taken by the authority, compelling the bank to approach the High Court under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution seeking intervention.

Citing R.D. Jain & Co. and NKGSB Co-operative Bank Ltd. v. Subir Chakravarty (2022) 10 SCC 286, the Court reiterated that once a secured creditor applies under Section 14, the District Magistrate or Chief Metropolitan Magistrate must act within 30 days, extendable to a maximum of 60 days. The Court also referred to its own earlier judgment in Bank of Maharashtra v. District Magistrate, Hisar (CWP-7018-2022 decided on 28.05.2024) laying down procedural guidelines for expeditious handling of such applications.

Decision: The High Court directed the Deputy Commissioner, Gurdaspur, to consider and dispose of Axis Bank’s pending Section 14 application dated January 23, 2024 within four weeks from receipt of the order. It clarified that the order is subject to any interim or final orders passed by competent judicial forums in favour of the borrowers or guarantors. The writ petition was accordingly disposed of with directions to ensure strict compliance with the statutory timelines under the SARFAESI Act.