The undistributed funds totalling over Rs 25,000 crore mendacity with the capital markets regulator’s account got here again into focus after Roy’s demise.
Madhabi Puri Buch, SEBI chairperson on Thursday stated the Sahara matter will continue for the capital markets regulator even after the demise of the group’s founder Subrata Roy.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a Ficci occasion, Buch stated for Sebi, the matter was about an entity’s conduct and it will continue no matter whether or not a person is alive or not.
Roy, the controversial founding father of the group, died on Tuesday after a protracted sickness.
Following Roy’s demise, the undistributed cash, which totaled over Rs 25,000 crore, that was within the capital markets regulator’s account got here again into the highlight.
In 2011, capital markets regulator Sebi ordered two Sahara Group corporations — Sahara India Real Estate Corporation Ltd (SIREL) and Sahara Housing Investment Corporation Ltd (SHICL) — to refund the cash raised from almost 3 crore buyers via sure bonds generally known as Optionally Fully Convertible Bonds (OFCDs).
This order got here after the regulator dominated that the funds had been raised by the 2 corporations in violation of its guidelines and laws.
After a protracted technique of appeals and cross-appeals, the Supreme Court on August 31, 2012 upheld Sebi’s instructions asking the 2 corporations to refund the cash collected from buyers with 15 % curiosity.
Sahara was finally requested to deposit an estimated Rs 24,000 crore with Sebi for additional refund to buyers, although the group has been sustaining that it had already refunded greater than 95 % of buyers instantly.
According to the capital markets regulator’s newest annual report, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) issued Rs 138.07 crore in refunds over 11 years to buyers of two Sahara Group corporations.
Meanwhile, the quantity deposited in specially-opened financial institution accounts for the reimbursement has risen to greater than Rs 25,000 crore.
In the absence of claims from a majority of the bondholders of the 2 Sahara corporations, the full quantity refunded by Sebi inched up by nearly Rs 7 lakh over the last fiscal 2022-23, whereas the steadiness in Sebi-Sahara refund accounts rose by Rs 1,087 crore through the 12 months.
Going by the annual report, Sebi acquired 19,650 functions involving 53,687 accounts as of March 31, 2023. Of these, “refunds have been made concerning 17,526 applications involving 48,326 accounts for an aggregate amount of Rs 138.07 crore, including the interest amount of Rs 67.98 crore.” The remaining functions had been closed because of their data not being traceable within the knowledge supplied by two Sahara Group corporations.
In its earlier replace, Sebi had put the full quantity refunded by it as of March 31, 2022, at Rs 138 crore regarding 17,526 functions.
Further, Sebi stated below varied orders handed by the Supreme Court and the attachment orders handed by the regulator, an mixture quantity of Rs 15,646.68 crore has been recovered by it as of March 31, 2023.
This quantity together with the accrued curiosity after due refunds to the eligible bondholders was deposited in nationalised banks when it comes to the judgment dated August 31, 2012, of the Supreme Court.
As of March 31, 2023, the full quantity deposited in nationalised banks is round Rs 25,163 crore,” Sebi said.
This quantity stood at Rs 24,076 crore, Rs 23,191 crore, and Rs 21,770.70 crore as of March 31, 2022, March 31, 2021, and March 31, 2020, respectively.
Meanwhile, the Centre in August began the method to refund Rs 5,000 crore of depositors whose funds are struck in 4 cooperative societies of Sahara Group.
Before this, Cooperation Minister Amit Shah launched the ‘CRCS-Sahara Refund Portal’ in July to facilitate the return of the cash to buyers. Around 18 lakh depositors have been registered on the portal.
In March, the federal government introduced that the cash could be returned to 10 crore buyers of the 4 cooperative societies inside 9 months.
The announcement adopted a Supreme Court order directing the switch of ₹ 5,000 crore from the Sahara-Sebi refund account to the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies (CRCS).
