Kochouseph Chittilappilly, Chairman Emeritus, V Guard Industries Ltd, has offloaded 50 lakh shares valued at ₹132 crore in the company to fund philanthropic activities.

The fund will be utilised for activities undertaken by the K Chittilappilly Foundation (KCF).

Chittilappilly told BusinessLine that the selling of stake to support social activities was planned earlier and he had sold 90 lakh shares in two financial years to raise the funds. According to the Companies Act, only specified activities are allowed by listed companies under CSR. The shares have been sold to mutual funds. The ongoing charity projects includes medical help for BPL families, meeting their housing needs, assisting charitable organisations with proven track records as well as entrepreneurial support for prospective business ventures. According to him, these charity works are ongoing, and will continue.

Market sources pointed out that Chittilappilly, the promoter of V Guard Industries, has moved out of business and is now focusing on philanthropy and social work, He is liquidating his shares to create funds for the cause and to support such activities.

It was pointed out that he had earlier sold 40 lakh shares worth ₹90 crore in February. In the regulatory filing at that time, he had informed that the sale was to raise funds for two initiatives undertaken as part of his commitment to social causes. KCF also decided to execute a signature project called Chittilappilly Square, which is working in the area of entrepreneurial development.

Akshay Agarwal, Managing Director of Kochi-based Acumen Capital Markets Ltd, said Chittilappilly sold 50 lakh shares, representing 1.16 per cent of the equity capital, at ₹265 per share. The shares were purchased by SBI Small Cap Fund. With this deal, SBIMF holding in V-Guard increased to 4.51 per cent whereas shareholding of Kochouseph Chittilappilly reduced to 10.56 per cent.

“The company is a well-run, professionally managed company, and we do not see the deal having any material impact on the share prices,” Agarwal said.

 

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