Supreme Court Denies Relief to Linde India in Sebi Valuation Dispute
The Supreme Court on Monday declined to provide relief to Linde India, an industrial gases and engineering company, in its plea against a valuation exercise mandated by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). Linde India had challenged the decision in the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT), which upheld Sebi’s order. The company approached the apex court, arguing that the valuation process could expose price-sensitive information. However, the court maintained that the tribunal had already addressed confidentiality concerns and allowed the valuation to proceed.
The valuation was ordered by Sebi in connection with a probe into related party transactions involving Linde India, Praxair India, and Linde South Asia Services. The National Stock Exchange (NSE) was instructed to appoint a valuer to assess the company’s business operations, following shareholder complaints about the company executing significant transactions without shareholder approval. SAT, in its ruling, stated that there was no illegality in the NSE’s appointment of a valuer and directed NSE and Sebi to safeguard sensitive data during the process.
Linde India has a separate plea pending in the tribunal, scheduled for hearing on October 15, where it is seeking a stay on the entire Sebi order. Meanwhile, Sebi has indicated that punitive measures could be considered once its investigation concludes. Linde India’s shares were trading over 5% higher at Rs 8,602 following the development.
Pic Courtesy: google/ images are subject to copyright
