The National Company Law Tribunal’s Mumbai bench has declared former Videocon promoter Venugopal Dhoot bankrupt, admitting State Bank of India’s petition against him in his capacity as personal guarantor to loans taken by Videocon Industries.
The order, pronounced on November 5 by a bench of Vinay Goel and Charanjeet Singh Gulati, appoints Asish Narayan as bankruptcy trustee. Narayan was earlier the resolution professional in Dhoot’s personal insolvency process.
SBI has put the total amount in default, including interest and penalties, at ₹12,668 crore as of September 30, 2026. Of this, ₹9,322 crore relates to a 2012 rupee term loan, ₹1,438 crore to loans originally taken by Videocon Telecommunications, and ₹1,908 crore to working capital facilities. Dhoot had signed personal guarantees on all three.
What The Order Means
Dhoot’s estate will vest in the trustee immediately and be distributed among his creditors. He has 7 days to submit a statement of his financial position. The trustee must notify creditors within 10 days, issue a public notice inviting claims, and file a preliminary report with the tribunal within 90 days.
From the date of the order, Dhoot is subject to the disqualifications and restrictions under Sections 140 and 141 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code. These include a bar on acting as a director or taking part in the promotion or management of a company, and limits on taking credit. The order stays in force until he is discharged under Section 138.
The tribunal had admitted SBI’s personal insolvency plea against Dhoot on April 8 this year. That plea related to defaults of ₹6,157.57 crore as personal guarantor of two group companies, and the tribunal rejected Dhoot’s limitation argument, holding that the clock for a personal guarantor starts from his own default on the guarantee, not the borrower’s.
In June, Dhoot submitted a repayment plan offering ₹600 crore over 36 months, tied to a proposed real estate development in Siliguri. SBI’s petition says this was roughly 0.42% of admitted dues.
Insolvency Proceedings In 2018
The resolution professional found the plan had not been prepared in consultation with him, offered nothing upfront, and depended on approvals and cash flows that could not be verified. Creditors rejected it, and the tribunal terminated the insolvency process on July 17. SBI filed for bankruptcy on September 24.
Videocon Industries was admitted into insolvency in June 2018 and later consolidated with 12 group companies. In December 2020, lenders approved Vedanta group unit Twin Star Technologies’ plan of around ₹2,962 crore, a haircut of over 95% on admitted claims of ₹64,838.63 crore.
In January 2022, the NCLAT set aside the tribunal’s approval of that plan, allowing appeals by Bank of Maharashtra and IFCI. During that process, Dhoot had sought a direction to banks to accept his own ₹31,789 crore plan.
SBI has also moved personal insolvency proceedings against his brothers, who are also Videocon promoters, and the NCLAT has dismissed their appeals against admission.
Separately, Dhoot is an accused in the ICICI Bank loan case. The CBI arrested him in December 2022 over alleged irregularities in a ₹3,250 crore loan Videocon got from ICICI Bank in 2012, days after arresting former ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar. He later got interim bail from the Bombay High Court.
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