Hospitality unicorn OYO has challenged the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) order for commencement of insolvency proceedings against its subsidiary OYO Hotels and Homes Pvt Ltd (OHHPL) over a dispute of ₹16 lakh.

The NCLT had admitted the insolvency plea on March 30, filed by creditor Rakesh Yadav contending that OHHPL defaulted for an amount of ₹16 lakh. It had directed the creditors of Ahmedabad-registered OHHPL to submit their claims with proof on or before April 15 to the interim resolution professional.

“We are surprised to hear that the NCLT has admitted a petition against OHHPL a subsidiary of OYO for ₹16 lakh in a contractual dispute, which dispute is not even with this subsidiary. We have filed an appeal. The matter is sub-judice and we would refrain from commenting further on the merits of the matter at this stage. We have strong faith and belief in our judicial system,” said an OYO spokesperson in a statement.

OYO also said that ₹16 lakh in dispute has already been paid to the claimant under protest by the entity (other than OHHPL) with whom the dispute was raised.

Meanwhile, OYO Founder Ritesh Agarwal said in a tweet that OYO has appealed with the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on the matter. “OYO is recovering from the pandemic steadily and our largest markets are operating profitably”, Agarwal added in his tweet.