Regulatory curbs don’t restrict bid to take over NDTV: Adani

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 26

The Adani Group on Friday rejected NDTV’s assertion that SEBI’s approval was necessary to acquire interests in RRPR, saying the promoter entity is not a part of the regulator’s order that restrained Prannoy and Radhika Roy from accessing the securities market.

Rejects NDTV’s claim of regulator’s nod

• RRPR Holding Pvt Ltd is a promoter group company of NDTV. It had taken Rs 403.85-crore loan in 2009-10 from Vishvapradhan Commercial Pvt Ltd and issued warrants which are now being converted into 99.9% stake in RRPR in case the loan was not repaid
• VCPL says the contentions raised by RRPR are “baseless, legally untenable and devoid of merit” and it must “immediately perform its obligation and allot the shares”

RRPR Holding Pvt Ltd is a promoter group company of NDTV. It had taken Rs 403.85-crore loan in 2009-10 from Vishvapradhan Commercial Pvt Ltd (VCPL) and issued warrants which are now being converted into 99.9% stake in RRPR in case the loan was not repaid. An Adani Group firm had recently acquired VCPL.

VCPL, the wholly owned subsidiary of AMG Media Networks Ltd (AMNL), says the contentions raised by RRPR are “baseless, legally untenable and devoid of merit” and said it must “immediately perform its obligation and allot the equity shares”.

“RRPR is not a party to the SEBI order dated November 27, 2020. Consequently, the restraints as pointed out by RRPR in paragraphs 111(b) and 112 of the SEBI order do not apply to RRPR. RRPR is, therefore, obligated to comply with its contractual obligations,” said Adani Enterprises in the regulatory update.

NDTV promoters Prannoy and Radhika Roy claim they are barred from accessing the securities market until November 26, 2022, and thus the Adani Group would need the approval of the SEBI to buy its stake.

“Unless pending appeal proceedings were to successfully conclude, SEBI approval is necessary for the proposed Acquirer to secure 99.5% interests in the Promoter Group vehicle, since this would consequently lead to the acquisition of voting rights in respect of 29.18% of the issued share capital of the Target Company,” NDTV had said in a regulatory filing on Thursday.

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