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Ramesh Sharma

Mr Sanjay Dalmia (right), Chairman & Managing Director, GHCL Ltd, and Mr Raman Chopra, Chief Financial Officer, at a press conference in the Capital on Friday. GHCL claimed that SEBI had “wrongly alleged” that the company had filed incorrect shareholding of promoters over the last four quarters and planned to contest the ruling.

Our Bureau

New Delhi, May 1 Soda ash and textiles firm GHCL Ltd on Friday claimed that market regulator SEBI had “wrongly alleged” that the company had filed incorrect shareholding of promoters over the last four quarters and planned to contest the ruling.

The GHCL Chairman, Mr Sanjay Dalmia, said the “detailed objections” are being filed against the SEBI order so that the same may be vacated.

SEBI, in an ex-parte order on April 20, had barred promoters of Ahmedabad-based GHCL Ltd and its promoter entities from dealing in the securities market until further orders for filing false shareholding of the promoters repeatedly over the four quarters of 2008. SEBI’s order directed GHCL Ltd, 43 promoter entities, Mr Dalmia, and the Managing Director, Mr Ravi Shanker Jalan, not to deal in the securities market until further orders.

Offering a clarification on the issue, the company said, “In our detailed objections, we have strongly contested the findings and order of SEBI — factually and legally. We have clarified that the variance between the shareholding pattern of the promoters as available with the Share Registrar of the company and as submitted to the Stock Exchanges existed as certain entities were holding a number of shares on behalf of the said promoters and these promoters had further requested the company to include these shares in the name of the respective promoter company.

“In this regards, a legal opinion was sought by the company to find out whether such inclusion was permissible or not. On being advised that such inclusion was permissible, the company included the shares held by other entities to be included in the name of the promoters. Thus the variance existed.” The company said that objections have been prepared after obtaining expert legal advice from a “very senior and learned Counsel, who is known authority in the field of Securities law.”

SEBI, in its ad interim, ex-parte order, had said: “GHCL has filed false shareholding of the promoters repeatedly over the four quarters of 2008, thereby misleading the investors about commitment of the promoters towards the company.”

SEBI investigations in the disclosures across the four quarters of 2008 showed significant variation with actual holdings of the promoters.

The difference in the holding was more than 100 per cent with actual promoter holdings being 17.65 per cent as against 40.30 per cent being the disclosed holding for the quarter ended September.

SEBI said that it was also found that promoter entities unjustly benefited from false media reports that the company did not deny when asked by the exchanges. The regulator also directed GHCL to reconcile and file the correct shareholding details with the stock exchanges.

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