- (1.) The petitioner filed this company petition under section 59 of the Companies Act, 2013 against Siemens Ltd. (respondent No. 1), TSR Darashaw Ltd. (respondent No. 2-transfer agent of respondent No. 1), Innova Securities and Investment Ltd. (respondent No. 3-Broker and Member of the National Stock Exchange, acted as share broker for purchase of the impugned shares) and Mr. Dominic Cajetan Viegas (respondent No. 4)-original registered shareholder seeking relief for rectification of share register of members in respect of 1,000 shares of Re. 1 each of respondent No. 1 company and insert the name of the petitioner in the place of respondent No. 4 and also for issuing duplicate certificates/new share certificates in the name of the petitioner and any other order entitling the petitioner to the corporate benefits ensued relating to the impugned shares. The case of the petitioner, respondent No. 3 entered into a contract for purchase of 100 shares at the NSE and issued contract note to the constituent on June 24, 1997 on July 2, 1997, respondent No. 3 received delivery of share certificate of 100 shares along with transfer deed executed by respondent No. 4 from NSE Clearing House, on the same date respondent No. 3 handed over consignment to Prakash Airflight Ltd. under Airway Bill No. 5873532 for delivering to respondent No. 3 office situated at Bangalore. But whereas the flight, upon which consignment, was crashed, on July 4, 1997 it was intimated to the agent of respondent No. 3 about loss of shipment on account of crash of flight carrying consignment. Respondent No. 3 lodged claim with the petitioner on July 11, 1997 for the consignment was already insured by respondent No. 3 with the petitioner. On receipt of such intimation, the petitioner, on July 10, 1997 intimated respondent No. 3 about appointment of M/s. H. Kannan and Co., as surveyors, the same is marked to the NSE as well. In furtherness to its action, respondent No. 3 on January 26, 1997 lodged a police complaint reporting loss of its shares in air crash. The petitioner also filed a civil suit bearing No. 1116 of 1998 on the file of the City Civil Court, Bangalore against respondent No. 1 and other companies whose shares were lost in the air crash. In the meanwhile, the surveyor appointed by the petitioner, on March 12, 1998 considering the report issued by courier, gave a report assessing the claim for Rs. 8,42,000. As a way of rechecking, the petitioner on March 23, 1998 appointed Mr. Mahendra Choksi, for investigating the claim decided by the surveyor, in pursuance of the case that investigation on August 16, 1998 confirmed that the consignment of respondent No. 3 was lost in the air crash flight ELBEE Courier. Then the petitioner on August 10, 1998 intimated the NSE about the approval of the claim of respondent No. 3 as 8,92,000 rupees with a request to the NSE for letter of subrogation from respondent No. 3. Respondent No. 3 on September 5, 1998 sent an acknowledgment of receiving the claim aforementioned by sending a subrogation letter to the petitioner. Basing on subrogation letter, the petitioner filed a civil suit bearing No. 3662 of 1999 at the Bombay High Court but the same was dismissed for default on September 20, 2013. Likewise, the suit filed by respondent No. 3 was also dismissed for default on July 12, 1997. Soon after dismissal of civil suit for default, the petitioner sent a letter to respondent No. 1-company on December 24, 2013 for issuing duplicate share certificate to the petitioner in lieu subrogation letter given by respondent No. 3. In reference to the said letter, respondent No. 2 (transfer agent) intimated the petitioner to obtain an appropriate order from the court of law for rectification of share register. The petitioner has also submitted these 1,000 shares for which it made a claim for only 100 shares of Rs. 10 each, when these shares were bought by respondent No. 3, and also they were only 100 shares at a premium of Rs. 250. Now this petitioner claim for 1,000 shares because these 100 shares split into 500 shares of Rs. 2 each in the year 2007, 500 bonus shares were allotted at the rate of 1:1 to the existing shares, that is how the petitioner made a claim for 1,000 shares. Accordingly, the petitioner being subrogated to the claim of respondent No. 3, filed this company petition for registering its name in the place of respondent No. 4 against the impugned shares and for receiving duplicate share certificate to the impugned shares mentioned above.
(2.) The case of respondents Nos. 1 and 2 that the petitioner is not entitled to re-agitate this claim before this forum after the suit filed by the petitioner was dismissed for default on the file of the hon'ble High Court of Bombay, and the claim is hit by limitation for this transaction of transfer took place on June 24, 1997.
(3.) On verification of the record it appears that respondents Nos. 3 and 4 have never appeared in this proceedings, therefore, this Bench on August 22, 2016 set this case ex parte against respondents Nos. 3 and 4.;