Government Wants SEBI To Go Deeper Into IndiGo Promoter Dispute
SEBI can probe the role of all board members and every entity associated with IndiGo co-promoters Rakesh Gangwal and Rahul Bhatia.
The government wants the Securities and Exchange Board of India to go deeper into the IndiGo promoter dispute and probe the role of all board members and every entity associated with Rakesh Gangwal and Rahul Bhatia, the co-promoters of InterGlobe Aviation Ltd.
The SEBI is free to action for any and all wrongdoing detected, officials said Thursday.
InterGlobe Aviation is the parent of the country’s largest airline IndiGo.
There are indications of violations in corporate governance, fair market trade and insider trading rules, and SEBI needs to probe role of each and every entity associated with all board members and promoter-linked entities, according to the officials.
The stock exchanges would collate data for all suspicious trades over the past one year, especially of those associated with all board members, including independent directors, and by entities directly or indirectly associated with Gangwal and Bhatia.
SEBI had a few months ago launched an investigation into insider trading violations at InterGlobe Aviation. That probe has now been expanded to cover the issues behind the IndiGo promoter dispute.
The regulator has already asked the company to file a reply on the issues by July 19.
Besides, a number of individuals—including executives, board members and the promoters—would be summoned soon by SEBI as part of the probe, officials said.
Rahul Bhatia and his affiliates (IGE Group) have around 38 percent stake in InterGlobe Aviation while Rakesh Gangwal along with his affiliates hold 37 percent of the airline.
Shares of InterGlobe Aviation have taken a beating for two straight sessions after the IndiGo promoter dispute surfaced on Tuesday. On Thursday, the stock fell 3.07 percent to Rs 1,354.85 apiece on the BSE while the benchmark Sensex gained 0.69 percent to end the day at 38,823.11 points.