We have audited the accompanying financial statements ofGTL Limited (“the Company”), which comprise the BalanceSheet as at March 31,2025, the Statement of Profit and Loss(including other comprehensive income), the Statement ofChanges in Equity and the Statement of Cash Flows for theyear ended on that date, notes to the financial statementsand a summary of material accounting policies and otherexplanatory information (hereinafter referred to as “thefinancial statements”).
In our opinion and to the best of our information andaccording to the explanations given to us, except for theeffect of matters prescribed in the basis for qualifiedopinion section of our report, the aforesaid financialstatements give the information required by the CompaniesAct, 2013 (“the Act”) in the manner so required and give atrue and fair view in conformity with the Indian AccountingStandards prescribed under section 133 of the Act readwith the Companies (Indian Accounting Standards) Rules,2015, as amended, (“Ind AS”) and other accountingprinciples generally accepted in India, of the state of affairsof the Company as at March 31,2025, the loss and othercomprehensive income, changes in equity and its cashflows for the year ended on that date.
Basis for Qualified Opinion
As mentioned in Note No. 32.1 to the Statement, the Companyhas neither paid nor provided interest on its borrowingsduring the financial year. Had such interest been recognized,the finance cost and interest liability for the year endedMarch 31, 2025 would have been more by ' 383.44 Crore.Consequently, the reported loss after Other ComprehensiveIncome by the Company for the year ended March 31,2025would have been ' 391.40 Crore. The Earnings per Share(EPS) would have been negative ' 24.91.
We conducted our audit of the financial statements inaccordance with the Standards on Auditing (SAs) specifiedunder section 143(10) of the Companies Act, 2013 (“theAct”). Our responsibilities under those Standards are furtherdescribed in the Auditor's Responsibilities for the Auditof the Financial Statements section of our report. We areindependent of the Company in accordance with the Codeof Ethics issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants ofIndia (“the ICAI”) together with the ethical / independencerequirements that are relevant to our audit of the financialstatements under the provisions of the Companies Act, 2013and the Rules thereunder, and we have fulfilled our otherethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements
and the ICAI's Code of Ethics. We believe that the auditevidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate toprovide a basis for our modified audit opinion on the financialstatements.
Material Uncertainty relating to Going Concern
We draw attention to the following note to the accompanyingfinancial statements-
Note no. 49 which inter-alia states that, the net worth ofthe Company has been eroded and the company's currentliabilities are higher than its current assets as at March31, 2025. The above conditions indicate the existence ofmaterial uncertainty that casts significant doubt aboutthe company's ability to continue as a going concern.However, the financial results of the Company have beenprepared on going concern basis for the reasons statedin the said note - The petition filed by one of the lendersis pending before National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT)and also, as against the 'in-principle' approval for the OTScommunicated by the Monitoring Institution and individualsanctions, the Company has funded the Escrow Accountmaintained for the said purpose and settled the dues ofnine original secured lenders (including the three settledduring the current quarter), besides entering into UpsideSharing Agreement with seven of them for sharing 75%of the net recovery amount of Arbitration Proceedings,amongst the lenders in the agreed proportion and theCompany is awaiting the outcome of the Arbitrationproceedings and also the OTS sanctions from the rest ofthe lenders along with the resolution of NCLT and DebtRecovery Tribunal (DRT) related issues.
Our opinion is not modified in respect of the above matter.
Emphasis of Matter
We invite attention to the note no. 47 which inter-alia statesthat, with regards to the investigation carried out by theCentral Bureau of Investigation of India (CBI), Directorateof Enforcement (ED) and Serious Fraud Investigation Office(SFIO) and the same is currently underway.
Key Audit Matters
Key audit matters are those matters that, in our professionaljudgment, were of most significance in our audit of thefinancial statements of the current period. These matterswere addressed in the context of our audit of the financialstatements as a whole, in forming our opinion thereon, and wedo not provide a separate opinion on these matters. We havedetermined the matters described below to be the key auditmatters to be communicated in our report.
Sr. No.
Key Audit Matter
Auditor’s Response
1.
Accuracy of recognition, measurement, presentation anddisclosures of revenues and other related balances inview of adoption of Ind AS 115 “Revenue from Contractswith Customers”
The application of the revenue accounting standardinvolves certain key judgments relating to identificationof distinct performance obligations, determinationof transaction price of the identified performanceobligations, the appropriateness of the basis used tomeasure revenue recognised over a period.
We assessed the Company's process to identify the impact of adoption
of the revenue accounting standard.
The procedure performed included the following:
1. Evaluated the design of internal controls relating to revenuerecognition.
2. Selected a sample of continuing and new contracts, and testedthe operating effectiveness of the internal control, relatingto identification of the distinct performance obligations anddetermination of transaction price.
3. Selected a sample of continuing and new contracts and performedthe following procedures:
- Read, analyzed and identified the distinct performanceobligations, if any, in these contracts.
- Compared these performance obligations with that identifiedand recorded by the Company.
- Considered the terms of the contracts to determine basis ofrecognizing the revenue 'at a point' or 'over the period', thetransaction price including any variable consideration to verifythe transaction price used to compute revenue and to test thebasis of estimation of the variable consideration.
- Verified whether the revenue has been recognised only postthe fulfilment of the performance obligations and relatedconditions.
2.
Evaluation of uncertain tax positions:
The Company has material uncertain tax positionsincluding matters under dispute which involvessignificant judgment to determine the possible outcomeof these disputes.
Our procedures included the following:
Obtained understanding of key uncertain tax positions;
Obtained details of completed tax assessments and demands for the
year ended March 31,2025 from the management;
We along with our internal tax experts -
i. Discussed with management and evaluated the Management'sunderlying key assumptions in estimating the tax provision;
ii. Assessed management's estimate of the possible outcome of thedisputed cases; and
iii. Considered legal precedence and other rulings in evaluatingmanagement's position on these uncertain tax positions.
Additionally, considered the effect of new information in respect of
uncertain tax positions as at April 1, 2024 to evaluate whether any
change was required to management's position on these uncertainties.
3.
Assessment of contingent liabilities and provisionsrelated to Taxation, Litigations and claims:
The assessment of the existence of the present legalor constructive obligation, analysis of the probability ofthe related payment and analysis of a reliable estimate,requires management's judgement to ensure appropriateaccounting or disclosures.
Due to the level of judgement relating to recognition,valuation and presentation of provisions and contingentliabilities, this is considered to be a key audit matter.
(Refer note 39 to the financial statements)
Our audit procedures included:
- As part of our audit procedures we have assessed Management'sprocesses to identify new possible obligations and changes inexisting obligations for compliance with Company policy and IndAS 37 requirements.
- We have analysed significant changes from prior periods andobtain a detailed understanding of these items and assumptionsapplied.
- We have obtained relevant status details and Managementrepresentations on the major outstanding litigations.
- As part of our audit procedures we have reviewed minutes ofboard meetings (including the Audit Committee).
- We have held regular discussions with Management and internallegal department.
- We challenged the assumptions and critical judgements madeby management which impacted their estimate of the provisionsrequired, considering judgements previously made by theauthorities in the relevant jurisdictions or any relevant opinionsgiven by the Company's advisors and assessing whether therewas an indication of management bias.
- We discussed the status in respect of significant provisions withthe Company's internal tax and legal team.
We performed retrospective review of management judgements
relating to accounting estimate included in the financial statement of
prior year and compared with the outcome.
Other matter
As at March 31,2025, balance Confirmations, with respect toBank Loan including interest accrued and Balance in EscrowAccount, Bank Guarantee, Bank Current Account and FixedDeposits aggregating to ' 3580.04 Crore, have not beenreceived.
Information Other than the Financial Statements andAuditor’s Report thereon
The Company's Board of Directors is responsible for thepreparation of the other information. The other informationcomprises the information included in the ManagementDiscussion and Analysis, Board's Report including Annexuresto Board's Report, Business Responsibility Report, CorporateGovernance and Shareholder's Information, but does not includethe financial statements and our auditor's report thereon.
Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover theother information and we do not express any form of assuranceconclusion thereon.
In connection with our audit of the financial statements, ourresponsibility is to read the other information identified abovewhen it becomes available and, in doing so, consider whetherthe other information is materially inconsistent with the financialstatements or our knowledge obtained during the course of ouraudit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated.
When we read other information, if we conclude that there is amaterial misstatement therein, we are required to communicatethe matter to those charged with governance and describeactions applicable in the applicable laws and regulations. Wehave nothing to report in this regard.
Responsibilities of Management and Those Charged withGovernance for the Financial Statements
The Company's Board of Directors is responsible for thematters stated in section 134(5) of the Act with respect tothe preparation of these financial statements that give a trueand fair view of the financial position, financial performance,total comprehensive income, changes in equity and cashflows of the Company in accordance with the Ind AS andother accounting principles generally accepted in India.This responsibility also includes maintenance of adequateaccounting records in accordance with the provisions ofthe Act for safeguarding the assets of the Company and forpreventing and detecting frauds and other irregularities;selection and application of appropriate accounting policies;making judgments and estimates that are reasonable andprudent; and design, implementation and maintenance ofadequate internal financial controls, that were operatingeffectively for ensuring the accuracy and completenessof the accounting records, relevant to the preparation andpresentation of the financial statements that give a true andfair view and are free from material misstatement, whetherdue to fraud or error.
In preparing the financial statements, management isresponsible for assessing the Company's ability to continueas a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters relatedto going concern and using the going concern basis ofaccounting unless management either intends to liquidate theCompany or to cease operations, or has no realistic alternativebut to do so.
The Board of Directors are responsible for overseeing theCompany's financial reporting process.
Auditor’s Responsibilities for the Audit of the FinancialStatements
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance aboutwhether the financial statements as a whole are free frommaterial misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and toissue an auditor's report that includes our opinion. Reasonableassurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guaranteethat an audit conducted in accordance with SAs will alwaysdetect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatementscan arise from fraud or error and are considered material if,individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably beexpected to influence the economic decisions of users taken onthe basis of these financial statements.
As part of an audit in accordance with SAs, we exerciseprofessional judgment and maintain professional skepticismthroughout the audit. We also:
• Identify and assess the risks of material misstatementof the financial statements, whether due to fraudor error, design and perform audit proceduresresponsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidencethat is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basisfor our opinion. The risk of not detecting a materialmisstatement resulting from fraud is higher than forone resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion,forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, orthe override of internal control.
• Obtain an understanding of internal financial controlsrelevant to the audit in order to design audit proceduresthat are appropriate in the circumstances. Under section143(3)(i) of the Act, we are also responsible for expressingour opinion on whether the Company has adequateinternal financial controls system in place and theoperating effectiveness of such controls.
• Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies usedand the reasonableness of accounting estimates andrelated disclosures made by the Board of Directors.
• Conclude on the appropriateness of management's use ofthe going concern basis of accounting and, based on theaudit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertaintyexists related to events or conditions that may castsignificant doubt on the Company's ability to continue as agoing concern. If we conclude that a material uncertaintyexists, we are required to draw attention in our auditor's
report to the related disclosures in the financial statementsor, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify ouropinion. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidenceobtained up to the date of our auditor's report. However,future events or conditions may cause the Company tocease to continue as a going concern.
• Evaluate the overall presentation, structure and contentof the financial statements, including the disclosures, andwhether the financial statements represent the underlyingtransactions and events in a manner that achieves fairpresentation.
Materiality is the magnitude of misstatements in the financialstatements that, individually or in aggregate, makes it probablethat the economic decisions of a reasonably knowledgeableuser of the financial statements may be influenced. We considerquantitative materiality and qualitative factors in (i) planning thescope of our audit work and in evaluating the results of our work;and (ii) to evaluate the effect of any identified misstatements inthe financial statements.
We communicate with those charged with governanceregarding, among other matters, the planned scope andtiming of the audit and significant audit findings, includingany significant deficiencies in internal control that we identifyduring our audit.
We also provide those charged with governance with a statementthat we have complied with relevant ethical requirementsregarding independence, and to communicate with them allrelationships and other matters that may reasonably be thoughtto bear on our independence, and where applicable, relatedsafeguards.
From the matters communicated with those charged withgovernance, we determine those matters that were of mostsignificance in the audit of the financial statements of thecurrent period and are therefore the key audit matters. Wedescribe these matters in our auditor's report unless law orregulation precludes public disclosure about the matter orwhen, in extremely rare circumstances, we determine thata matter should not be communicated in our report becausethe adverse consequences of doing so would reasonablybe expected to outweigh the public interest benefits of suchcommunication.
Report on Other Legal and Regulatory Requirements
I. As required by the Companies (Auditor's Report) Order,2020 (“the Order”) issued by the Central Governmentof India in terms of sub-section (11) of section 143 ofthe Act, we give in the “Annexure A”, a statement on thematters specified in paragraphs 3 and 4 of the Order tothe extent applicable.
II. As required by Section 143 (3) of the Act, we report that:
a) We have sought and obtained all the information andexplanations which to the best of our knowledge andbelief were necessary for the purposes of our audit.
b) In our opinion, proper books of account as requiredby law have been kept by the Company so far as itappears from our examination of those books.
c) The reports on the accounts of the branch offices ofthe Company have not been audited under Section143(8) of the Act by branch auditor. Accounts of thebranch are management certified and have beenappropriately dealt with by us in preparing thisreport. (Refer Point (a) of Other Matter paragraphabove)
d) The Balance Sheet, the Statement of Profit and Lossincluding (other comprehensive income), the CashFlow Statement and Statement of Changes in Equitydealt with by this Report are in agreement with thebooks of account.
e) I n our opinion, the aforesaid Financial Statementscomply with the Ind AS specified under Section 133of the Act, read with Rule 3 of the Companies (IndianAccounting Standards) Rules, 2015.
f) On the basis of the written representations receivedfrom the directors as on March 31, 2025 takenon record by the Board of Directors, none of thedirectors is disqualified as on March 31,2025 frombeing appointed as a director in terms of Section164 (2) of the Act.
g) With respect to the adequacy of the internalfinancial controls over financial reporting of theCompany and the operating effectiveness of suchcontrols, refer to our separate Report in “AnnexureB” to this report.
h) With respect to the other matters to be included inthe Auditor's Report under section 197(16) of theAct:
In our opinion and according to the information andexplanation given to us, the remuneration paid bythe Company to its directors during the current yearis in accordance with the provision of section 197 ofthe Act.
i) With respect to the other matters to be included inthe Auditor's Report in accordance with Rule 11 ofthe Companies (Audit and Auditors) Rules, 2014, inour opinion and to the best of our information andaccording to the explanations given to us:
i. The Company has disclosed the impact ofpending litigations on its financial position in itsFinancial Statements - Refer Note No. 39.C.1to the Financial Statements.
ii. The Company does not have any long - termcontracts including derivative contracts forwhich there are any material foreseeablelosses.
iii. There has been no delay in transferringamounts, required to be transferred, to theInvestor Education and Protection Fund bythe Company. However, unpaid dividend of '0.20 Crore pertaining to the years 2000-01,2001-02 and 2003-04 to 2009-10 has notbeen transferred to Investor Education andProtection Fund but is held in abeyance onaccount of pending legal cases.
iv. a) t he Management has represented that,
to the best of its knowledge and belief,no funds (which are material eitherindividually or in the aggregate) havebeen advanced or loaned or invested(either from borrowed funds or sharepremium or any other sources or kindof funds) by the Company to or in anyother person or entity, including foreignentity (“Intermediaries”), with theunderstanding, whether recorded inwriting or otherwise, that the Intermediaryshall, whether, directly or indirectly lendor invest in other persons or entitiesidentified in any manner whatsoever byor on behalf of the Company (“UltimateBeneficiaries”) or provide any guarantee,security or the like on behalf of theUltimate Beneficiaries;
b) the Management has represented, that,to the best of its knowledge and belief,no funds (which are material eitherindividually or in the aggregate) havebeen received by the Company fromany person or entity, including foreignentities (“Funding Parties”), with theunderstanding, whether recorded inwriting or otherwise, that the Companyshall, whether, directly or indirectly, lend
or invest in other persons or entitiesidentified in any manner whatsoeverby or on behalf of the Funding Party(“Ultimate Beneficiaries”) or provide anyguarantee, security or the like on behalfof the Ultimate Beneficiaries; and
c) based on audit procedures that have beenconsidered reasonable and appropriatein the circumstances, nothing has cometo our notice that has caused us tobelieve that the representations undersub-clause (i) and (ii) of Rule 11(e), asprovided under (a) and (b) above, containany material mis-statement.
v. The Company has not declared or paid dividendduring the year. Hence, this clause is not applicable.
vi. Based on our examination which included testchecks, the Company has used an accountingsoftware for maintaining its books of account whichhas a feature of recording audit trail (edit log) facilityand the same has operated throughout the year forall relevant transactions recorded in the software.Further, during the course of our audit, we did notcome across any instance of audit trail feature beingtampered with. Additionally, the audit trail has beenpreserved by the Company as per the statutoryrequirements for record retention.
For GDA & Associates
Chartered Accountants
Firm Registration Number: 135780W
Akshay D. Maru
Partner
Membership No: 150213
UDIN : 25150213BMSCBD7945
Place : Mumbai
Date : May 07, 2025