Once the National Company Law Tribunal admits an application and triggers the corporate insolvency resolution process, the law demands that the event be made public. Section 15 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 governs that announcement: it tells the world that the corporate debtor is in insolvency, names the interim resolution professional now in charge, and — critically — fixes the window within which every creditor must come forward and stake its claim. The public announcement is the procedural hinge between admission and the building of the creditors' committee: miss it, and a creditor may find its claim extinguished by an approved resolution plan. This article unpacks the text of Section 15, the machinery of Regulation 6 of the CIRP Regulations, the contents of Form A, and the rich case law on claims, belatedness and the “clean slate” that the announcement ultimately serves.
Where Section 15 Sits in the CIRP Scheme
Section 15 is the third step in the opening sequence of the corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP). The process is initiated by a financial creditor (Section 7), an operational creditor (Sections 8 and 9) or the corporate debtor itself (Section 10). On admission of the application, Section 13 commands the Adjudicating Authority to do three things at once: declare a moratorium under Section 14, cause a public announcement of the initiation of CIRP, and appoint an interim resolution professional (IRP). Section 15 then prescribes what that public announcement must contain, and Section 13(1)(b) read with Section 15(2) provides that it shall be made “in such manner as may be specified” by the regulations.
The Supreme Court in Innoventive Industries Ltd. v. ICICI Bank, (2018) 1 SCC 407 — the first authoritative judgment on the Code — mapped this sequence in detail, explaining that on admission the moratorium under Sections 13 and 14 is triggered automatically and creditors must thereafter file their claims before the resolution professional within the time specified in the public announcement. The public announcement is therefore not a ceremonial formality; it is the mechanism by which the universe of claims against the corporate debtor is gathered so that a committee of creditors can be constituted and a resolution plan negotiated. For the architecture within which this sits, see our note on the object and scheme of the IBC and on the insolvency-triggering events that precede admission.
The Bare Text of Section 15
Section 15 is short but exhaustive in fixing the mandatory contents of the announcement. Sub-section (1) provides that the public announcement of the corporate insolvency resolution process under Section 13 shall contain the following information:
(a) name and address of the corporate debtor under the corporate insolvency resolution process; (b) name of the authority with which the corporate debtor is incorporated or registered; (c) the last date for submission of claims, as may be specified; (d) details of the interim resolution professional who shall be vested with the management of the corporate debtor and be responsible for receiving claims; (e) penalties for false or misleading claims; and (f) the date on which the corporate insolvency resolution process shall close, which shall be the one hundred and eightieth day from the date of the admission of the application under section 16.
Sub-section (2) provides that the public announcement under this section shall be made in such manner as may be specified. The phrase “as may be specified” is the doorway through which the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) Regulations enter — most importantly Regulation 6 of the CIRP Regulations, which dictates the timing, the form and the channels of publication.
The Mandatory Contents, Clause by Clause
Each limb of Section 15(1) does specific work. Clause (a) identifies the entity, removing ambiguity where group companies share similar names. Clause (b) names the incorporating or registering authority — for most companies, the Registrar of Companies — which lets creditors verify the debtor's identity. Clause (c) is the operative deadline: it fixes the last date for submission of claims, and that date is “as may be specified,” meaning it is governed by the regulations rather than left to the IRP's discretion. Under the CIRP Regulations the public announcement must offer at least fourteen days from the date of appointment of the IRP for the submission of proof of claims, but the date cannot be beyond the ninetieth day of the insolvency commencement date.
Clause (d) is the heart of the announcement for practical purposes: it gives the details of the interim resolution professional — including registration number and contact address — who is now “vested with the management of the corporate debtor and responsible for receiving claims.” From the insolvency commencement date the powers of the board of directors stand suspended and vest in the IRP. Clause (e) requires a statement of the penalties for false or misleading claims, a deterrent that ties into Section 75 of the Code. Clause (f) discloses the outer limit of the process: the one hundred and eightieth day from admission, the statutory CIRP timeline (extendable under Section 12, subject to the overall 330-day cap introduced by the 2019 amendment).
Regulation 6: The Machinery of Publication
Section 15(2) is fleshed out by Regulation 6 of the IBBI (Insolvency Resolution Process for Corporate Persons) Regulations, 2016. Regulation 6(1) requires the IRP to make a public announcement “immediately” on appointment, where the Explanation defines “immediately” as not later than three days from the date of his appointment. This is a tight, mandatory deadline designed to give creditors the maximum runway within the larger statutory clock.
Regulation 6(2) dictates the channels of publication. The announcement must be (i) published in one English and one regional-language newspaper with wide circulation at the location of the registered office and principal office (if any) of the corporate debtor, and at any other location where, in the opinion of the IRP, the corporate debtor conducts material business operations; (ii) hosted on the website, if any, of the corporate debtor; and (iii) hosted on the website, if any, designated by the Board for the purpose. The Board has designated www.ibbi.gov.in, and the IRP is required to send the public announcement in Form A by email so that it is published on the Board's website as well. The cost of the public announcement is borne by the applicant initially and reimbursed from the insolvency resolution process costs.
Form A: The Prescribed Template
The public announcement is not free-form. Schedule I to the CIRP Regulations prescribes Form A, the template that operationalises every clause of Section 15(1). Form A carries the heading “Public Announcement” with the citation “Under Regulation 6 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (Insolvency Resolution Process for Corporate Persons) Regulations, 2016,” and contains numbered fields: the name and registered office of the corporate debtor; the date of admission and the name of the Adjudicating Authority; the name, registration number, address and email of the interim resolution professional; the last date for submission of proof of claims; the classes of creditors (financial, operational, workmen and employees, and others) with the relevant claim Form (Forms B to F) each must use; the date on which the CIRP shall close; and the penalties for false or misleading claims.
Because Form A is statutory, an announcement that omits a mandatory particular — for instance, the last date for claims, or the IRP's contact details — is defective and exposes the process to challenge. The discipline of Form A ensures uniformity across the country and gives creditors, wherever situated, a predictable document to read and act upon.
Timing and the Insolvency Commencement Date
The chronology of Section 15 is anchored to the insolvency commencement date. Section 5(12) defines it as the date of admission of an application for initiating CIRP by the Adjudicating Authority under Sections 7, 9 or 10. After the IBC (Amendment) Act, 2020, Section 16(1) requires the Adjudicating Authority to appoint the IRP on the insolvency commencement date itself, so that admission, appointment of the IRP and the start of the moratorium are effectively simultaneous.
From that single date the clocks begin: the IRP must publish the announcement within three days (Regulation 6); the announcement must allow at least fourteen days for proof of claims; the ordinary claims window runs up to the ninetieth day of the insolvency commencement date (Regulation 12); and the CIRP itself must close on the one hundred and eightieth day, subject to extension. In Innoventive Industries v. ICICI Bank the Supreme Court underscored that this is a strict, time-bound code in which the moratorium and the call for claims flow directly from admission, displacing inconsistent State law such as the Maharashtra Relief Undertakings Act there in issue.
The Public Announcement as an Invitation to Claims
The single most consequential function of the public announcement is that it invites claims. Regulation 12 provides that a creditor shall submit its claim with proof on or before the last date mentioned in the public announcement. A creditor who misses that date may still submit its claim, with proof, to the IRP or resolution professional on or before the ninetieth day of the insolvency commencement date. The announcement therefore opens the claims process and fixes the two key milestones — the ordinary last date and the ninety-day outer limit.
The role of the resolution professional in handling these claims is administrative, not adjudicatory. In Committee of Creditors of Essar Steel India Ltd. v. Satish Kumar Gupta, (2020) 8 SCC 531, the Supreme Court held that the resolution professional is required only to collect, collate and admit claims on the basis of which negotiations can take place between the resolution applicant and the committee of creditors; the RP does not sit in judgment over disputed claims like a court. This collation, triggered by the public announcement, produces the list of creditors from which the committee of creditors is constituted — a topic developed in our notes on the initiation of CIRP by a financial creditor and on the key definitions of financial and operational debt that determine how a claimant is classified.
Belated Claims and the Cost of Ignoring the Announcement
What happens to a creditor who slept on the public announcement? The answer is increasingly unforgiving. In M/s RPS Infrastructure Ltd. v. Mukul Kumar, 2023 INSC 816 (decided 11 September 2023), the appellant filed its claim 287 days after the initiation of CIRP — long after the resolution plan had been approved by the committee of creditors. The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, holding that a delayed claim filed after the plan is approved cannot be admitted at a belated stage, that the IBC is a strict time-bound process, and that the resolution plan binds all stakeholders, including late claimants.
The Court reasoned that the public announcement, hosted in newspapers and on the IBBI website, is constructive notice to the world; a creditor cannot plead ignorance of a process it could have discovered by ordinary diligence. The resolution professional has no duty — and indeed no power — to chase down creditors who do not respond to the announcement, nor to reopen the claims process once the plan is finalised. RPS Infrastructure thus crystallises the practical stake of Section 15: the announcement is the creditor's one fair opportunity to come forward, and the consequences of inaction are borne by the creditor, not the resolution.
The Clean-Slate Theory: Why the Announcement Matters
The severity of the belated-claims rule is the flip side of a principle that protects the successful resolution applicant: the clean slate. In Ghanashyam Mishra and Sons Pvt. Ltd. v. Edelweiss Asset Reconstruction Co. Ltd., (2021) 9 SCC 657 (decided 13 April 2021), the Supreme Court held that once a resolution plan is approved by the Adjudicating Authority under Section 31, all claims that were not part of the plan stand extinguished, and no person — including the Central Government, any State Government or any local authority in respect of statutory dues — can thereafter raise a claim against the corporate debtor for the pre-approval period.
The Court expressly tied this to the claims process: the resolution professional, after appointment, makes a public announcement inviting all claims, and once the plan is approved no further claim can be entertained. The clean slate gives the resolution applicant a hydra-free company, which in turn makes the company a viable acquisition and maximises the value realised for creditors. But that finality is only just because Section 15 gave every creditor notice and a window to participate. The public announcement is thus the procedural fairness that legitimises the substantive harshness of extinguishment.
From Announcement to Verified Claims
The announcement starts a pipeline. Once claims are received pursuant to Regulation 12, Regulation 13 requires the IRP or RP to verify every claim within seven days of the last date for receipt, and to maintain a list of creditors containing the names, the amounts claimed and admitted, and the security interest, if any. The list must be displayed on the corporate debtor's website (if any), filed with the Adjudicating Authority, and updated as claims are verified or revised. Where the RP does not collate a claim after verification, the amended Regulation 13 requires reasons to be recorded.
This verification exercise feeds directly into the constitution of the committee of creditors under Section 21, because only financial creditors whose claims are admitted have voting rights. The administrative, collation-only character of the exercise — reaffirmed in Essar Steel — means that genuinely disputed questions are left to be resolved through the plan process or, if necessary, by the Adjudicating Authority, rather than decided unilaterally by the RP at the verification stage.
Constitutional Validity of the Process
The entire architecture in which Section 15 operates — admission, moratorium, public announcement, collation of claims and a creditor-driven resolution — was challenged as unconstitutional and comprehensively upheld in Swiss Ribbons Pvt. Ltd. v. Union of India, (2019) 4 SCC 17 (decided 25 January 2019). A two-judge Bench upheld the Code in its entirety, holding that the legislative scheme passed the test of Article 14 and describing the IBC as a beneficial economic legislation in respect of which the Court would adopt a hands-off approach.
While Swiss Ribbons focused on provisions such as Sections 7, 12A, 29A and 53, its broader holding legitimises the public-announcement-and-claims machinery: the Court accepted that a fast, predictable, time-bound process — in which creditors are notified by public announcement and must come forward promptly — serves the legitimate object of maximising the value of the corporate debtor's assets and reviving viable companies. The famous line that the Code had ended the “defaulter's paradise” presupposes exactly the kind of swift, notice-driven gathering of claims that Section 15 commands.
Common Defects and Practical Pitfalls
Several recurring problems arise in practice. First, delay: publishing the announcement beyond the three-day limit in Regulation 6 invites objection and compresses the creditors' window. Second, inadequate circulation: failing to publish in a regional-language newspaper at every location of material business operations can leave local operational creditors uninformed and generate disputes about constructive notice. Third, defective Form A: omitting the last date for claims, the correct claim-Form references, or the IRP's registration details renders the announcement incomplete.
Fourth, the belated-claim trap: creditors who learn of the CIRP late often assume the RP can simply admit their claim, but RPS Infrastructure shows that once the plan is approved, the door is shut. Fifth, statutory dues: government departments frequently fail to monitor IBBI announcements and find their dues extinguished under Ghanashyam Mishra. The practical lesson for both practitioners and creditors is that the public announcement is a hard deadline machine: the IRP must execute it punctiliously, and every creditor — including the State — must watch for it. For how different categories of creditor reach the announcement stage, compare our notes on the initiation of CIRP by an operational creditor.
Exam Pointers and Quick Revision
For judiciary and CLAT-PG aspirants, Section 15 is a high-yield, detail-heavy topic. Remember the six mandatory contents of the announcement under Section 15(1)(a)–(f): name and address of the corporate debtor; the incorporating/registering authority; the last date for claims; details of the IRP; penalties for false claims; and the 180th-day closing date. Pair this with Regulation 6 (announcement within three days; one English and one regional newspaper; debtor's website; IBBI website; Form A) and with Regulation 12 (last date, then up to the 90th day for belated claims).
On case law, be ready to deploy four anchors: Innoventive Industries v. ICICI Bank (the foundational mapping of admission, moratorium and claims; (2018) 1 SCC 407); Essar Steel v. Satish Kumar Gupta (RP's role in collating claims is administrative, not adjudicatory; (2020) 8 SCC 531); RPS Infrastructure v. Mukul Kumar (belated claims after plan approval cannot be admitted; 2023 INSC 816); and Ghanashyam Mishra v. Edelweiss ARC (clean slate — claims outside the approved plan stand extinguished; (2021) 9 SCC 657). Tie them together with Swiss Ribbons (constitutional validity) and Section 5(12) (insolvency commencement date as the anchor of all timelines). Return to the IBC notes hub for the full sequence of CIRP topics.
Frequently asked questions
What is a public announcement under Section 15 of the IBC?
It is the formal notice, made under Section 13 read with Section 15, that the corporate insolvency resolution process has commenced against a corporate debtor. It names the corporate debtor and the interim resolution professional, fixes the last date for creditors to submit claims, states the penalties for false claims, and gives the 180th-day closing date of the process. Its core function is to invite all creditors to file their claims.
Within what time must the public announcement be made?
Under Regulation 6 of the IBBI (Insolvency Resolution Process for Corporate Persons) Regulations, 2016, the interim resolution professional must make the announcement “immediately” on appointment, which the Explanation defines as not later than three days from the date of his appointment. Appointment of the IRP coincides with the insolvency commencement date under Section 5(12).
Where must the public announcement be published?
Regulation 6(2) requires publication in one English and one regional-language newspaper with wide circulation at the registered office, the principal office and any place of material business operations of the corporate debtor; on the corporate debtor's website, if any; and on the website designated by the IBBI (www.ibbi.gov.in). The prescribed format is Form A under Schedule I to the CIRP Regulations.
What happens if a creditor files its claim after the last date in the announcement?
Under Regulation 12, a creditor who misses the last date may still file with proof up to the ninetieth day of the insolvency commencement date. Beyond that — and certainly after the resolution plan is approved — the claim is generally barred. In RPS Infrastructure Ltd. v. Mukul Kumar (2023 INSC 816) the Supreme Court refused a claim filed 287 days late, holding that delayed claims cannot be admitted once the plan is approved.
Does the resolution professional decide whether a claim is valid?
No. In Committee of Creditors of Essar Steel India Ltd. v. Satish Kumar Gupta (2020) 8 SCC 531, the Supreme Court held that the resolution professional's role in handling claims is administrative, not adjudicatory: the RP collects, collates and admits claims, but does not finally adjudicate disputed claims like a court. Genuinely disputed claims are resolved through the plan process or by the Adjudicating Authority.
Why is the public announcement so important to the clean-slate principle?
Because the announcement is the creditor's one fair opportunity to come forward, it legitimises the harsh finality of the clean slate. In Ghanashyam Mishra and Sons Pvt. Ltd. v. Edelweiss Asset Reconstruction Co. Ltd. (2021) 9 SCC 657, the Supreme Court held that on approval of a resolution plan under Section 31, all claims not part of the plan — including government statutory dues — stand extinguished. That extinguishment is just only because Section 15 gave every creditor notice and a window to file.