JAL holds significant assets, including real estate projects in Noida and Greater Noida, along with cement plants, hospitality properties and infrastructure investments
One of India’s biggest corporate insolvency battles has reached the Supreme Court. Mining giant Vedanta has escalated its fight against Adani Enterprises’ approved takeover of debt-ridden Jaiprakash Associates Ltd (JAL) after failing to secure relief from lower tribunals.
The NCLT’s Allahabad bench approved Adani Enterprises‘ ₹14,535 crore bid to acquire JAL on March 17. Vedanta challenged the decision before the NCLAT which declined to stay the plan. The matter has now been carried to the apex court.
Vedanta’s petition was filed on March 25 and registered on March 30 according to the Supreme Court website. The company has named JAL’s resolution professional Bhuvan Madan as a respondent.
At the heart of the dispute is a clash over how bids should be evaluated. Vedanta initially offered around ₹17,000 crore including an upfront payment of approximately ₹4,000 crore with the remainder payable over six years. Adani submitted a ₹14,535 crore bid offering around ₹6,000 crore upfront with full payment committed within two to three years.
Creditors chose Adani’s proposal citing higher upfront payment and faster recovery timelines as more favourable over Vedanta’s higher overall bid spread over a longer period.
Vedanta’s chairman Anil Agarwal publicly claimed the company was originally declared the winner. In a social media post Agarwal said Vedanta was “declared the highest bidder publicly” and that the company was informed in writing that it had won before the decision was reversed.
The total admitted claims against JAL exceeded ₹57,000 crore. The CoC approved Adani’s plan with a 93.81% voting share in November 2025. JAL holds significant assets including real estate projects in Noida and Greater Noida along with cement plants hospitality properties and infrastructure investments.
The Supreme Court hearing is expected in the coming weeks and the outcome could set an important precedent for how India’s insolvency framework evaluates competing bids going forward.
