Argus Partners

Finance, Corporate Restructuring & Insolvency, Real Estate

Partner

Aastha’s practice focuses on financing as well as corporate insolvency and restructuring matters. She holds extensive experience of over 12 years in handling various banking and finance, projects and project finance transactions, both as lenders’ counsel as well as borrower’s counsel. She advises several renowned banks, NBFCs, credit funds and large corporate houses on various transactions including, structured finance, syndicated lending, real estate financing and financing through NCDs.

Aastha’s restructuring experience involves providing strategic inputs and solutions on a full range of contentious as well as non-contentious distressed situations. She advises a wide range of stakeholders on corporate insolvency and restructuring matters which includes investors, asset reconstruction companies, financial institutions as well as the committees of creditors and regularly appears before the NCLT for various matters under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). She is also involved in making stakeholders’ representations to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India on issues under the existing IBC regime and suggesting changes to the same.

Aastha has pursued her B.A.,LL.B (Hons.) from the National University of Juridical Sciences (NUJS), Kolkata.

Select Professional Experience

Advised SWAMIH Investment Fund I on its investment of INR 300 crores in the Hubtown Group project 'Rising City'.

Advised Dalmia Polypro Industries on raising USD 30 million external commercial borrowing from DFC for establishing a greenfield recycling facility in Maharashtra.

Represented the erstwhile HDFC Limited (since merged with HDFC Bank) before the Supreme Court, against IL&FS.

Advised on India's largest ever merger to create India's second largest bank, HDFC Bank.

Advised Ind Swift Laboratories Limited and its promoters on the sale of its API and CRAMS businesses for INR 1,650 crores and the sale of the intermediates manufacturing business of Essix Biosciences Limited to India Resurgence Fund.

Advised ACRE ARC on purchase of distressed loans from HDFC Limited.

Advised Polygenta Technologies Limited (a leading PET recycling company engaged in sustainable circular economy), on Indian law aspects on the external commercial borrowing raised from DEG - German Investment and Development Company mbH and Danish development financier IFU.

Advised the committee of creditors on the corporate insolvency resolution process of Binani Cement Limited under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016.

Advised India Resurgence Fund promoted by Piramal Enterprises Limited and Bain Capital Credit in its investment of up to Rs 615 crore ($83 million) in Gujarat-based Setco Group.

Advised the consortium of lenders of Garden Silk Mills Limited (GSML) led by Bank of Baroda, on the resolution of GSML’s account under RBI’s circular, dated June 7, 2019, on resolution of stressed assets.

Advising an alternate investment fund set up by the Government under the Special Window for Completion of Construction of Affordable and Mid-Income Housing Projects, on an ongoing basis, on their investments in various real estate projects across the country.

Advised Magma Fincorp on the acquisition of GE Money Housing Finance (GEMHF) and the entire home equity loan portfolio of GE Money Financial Services (GEMFS).

West Bengal Bar Council.