The battle for control of Religare Enterprises (REL) has started looking like a never-ending soap opera. On Tuesday, Rashmi Saluja, the ousted executive chairperson of REL, made the first move by filing a fresh writ petition in the Delhi High Court, seeking to quash the open offer by the Burman family-led entities. This marks the seventh legal attempt by her to stall the takeover process. The court is expected to hear her petition on Wednesday (today).
Within hours, the REL board wrote a letter to the company secretary, asking him to ensure that Saluja’s “office stands vacated with effect from the date of the annual general meeting, i.e. February 7, 2025.” The letter, signed by director Praveen Kumar Tripathi, claimed it was “for and on behalf of the board of directors” of REL. “As the company secretary, you should ensure compliance with the applicable statutory provisions and make the necessary filings with the relevant authorities, including but not limited to stock exchanges, Ministry of Corporate Affairs and intimation to the Reserve Bank of India,” the letter said.
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Over 97% of REL shareholders rejected Saluja’s reappointment as the chairperson and director at the AGM last week, though she had sought to stop discussions on that agenda. In her latest plea filed before the court, Saluja has sought to quash the open offer process initiated by the Burmans and to nullify the comments made by Sebi in its letter regarding the open offer.
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Saluja alleged that Sebi has “failed to discharge its responsibilities as a regulator” and has “failed to enforce the order passed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)” on December 9, 2024. The RBI order imposed certain conditions on the Burmans’ open offer. The RBI had directed Burmans to consolidate all NBFCs under their control by March 2026. Saluja claimed the Burmans’ letter of offer (January 18) omitted these critical conditions, misleading shareholders.
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