In a setback to the Burman family, the Madhya Pradesh High Court has stayed the approval granted by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for making an open offer to acquire an additional 26% stake in Religare Enterprises as well as the company’s annual general meeting (AGM) scheduled for December 31.
Earlier this month, RBI approved the open offer of the Burman family, which currently holds a 25% stake in Religare through its four entities, to acquire an additional 26%, potentially gaining majority control of the NBFC.
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The AGM gains importance as Religare chairperson Rashmi Saluja is up for reappointment, which had already been pushed to December from September. The Burmans, proxy firm InGovern, as well as certain institutional investors have called for voting Saluja out against her fresh five-year term for on the Religare board.
“Till further orders, the notice dated December 9, 2024 (RBI approval) and the Annual General Body Meeting of Respondent No. 7 (Religare Enterprises) which is scheduled to be held on December 31, 2024 shall remained stayed,” Madhya Pradesh High Court said in its order.
The matter will be next heard after four weeks, tentatively on January 17.
The order passed by a division bench of chief justice Suresh Kumar Kait and justice Vivek Jain was in response to a public interest litigation filed by Madhya Pradesh-based advocate Vijayant Mishra, representing the interest of Religare’s minority shareholders.
Mishra’s plea said if the open offer goes through and the four companies consolidate as per RBI’s condition, the control will fall in the hands of only 399 persons, affecting the shareholding of 73,263 persons who hold up to Rs 2 lakh worth of shares in Religare.
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He has requested the court to set up an independent commission of enquiry to oversee and monitor the proposed acquisition of Religare to protect the minority shareholders’ interest.
This court order further elongates the dispute between the Religare management and the Burmans, spanning over one-and-a-half years now. It started in September last year when the Burmans had announced acquiring additional stake in the NBFC through a Rs 2,116-crore open offer. The offer was contested by the Religare management,
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