BEFORE THE SECURITIES APPELLATE TRIBUNAL
MUMBAI
Appeal No. 32 of 2011
Date of decision: 10.3.2011 Aruna Hotels Ltd.
No. 145, Sterling Road,
Nungambakkam, Chennai – 600 034.
……Appellant
Versus
Securities and Exchange Board of India
SEBI Bhavan, Plot No. C-4A, G Block,
Bandra Kurla Complex, Bandra (East),
Mumbai – 400 051.
…… Respondent
Mr. D. Ramjee, Authorized Representative for the Appellant.
Mr. Ajay Khaire, Advocate with Ms. Amrita Joshi, Advocate for the Respondent.
CORAM : Justice N. K. Sodhi, Presiding Officer
P. K. Malhotra, Member
S. S. N. Moorthy, Member
Per : Justice N. K. Sodhi, Presiding Officer (Oral)
We have heard the authorized repr esentative of the appellant and the
learned counsel for the respondent Board. The only charge levelled against the
appellant is that there was delay on its pa rt in dematerializing the shares of its
investors/shareholders. As per the regul ations framed by the Securities and
Exchange Board of India, requests for de materialisation are supposed to be dealt
within 15 days. In the case before us, there was a delay in complying with the
requests of the investors in 213 cases a nd the delay ranges from 10 to 120 days.
The fact that there was a delay is admitted by the authorized representative of the
appellant. This being so, we are satisfied that the appellant violated the
provisions of Regulation 54(5) of the S ecurities and Exchange Board of India
(Depositories and Participants) Regulati ons, 1996. Since the charge has been
established, penalty must follow. Since all the requests from the
investors/shareholders have now been complied with, the adjudicating officer
appears to have taken a lenient view and imposed a penalty of ` 2 lacs. The
2
authorized representative of the appella nt contends that the amount of penalty
may be reduced. Since the adjudicating officer has imposed a paltry sum of only
` 2 lacs, we do not find any ground to reduce it further.
In the result, we find no merit in the appeal and the same stands dismissed
with no order as to costs.
Sd/-
Justice N. K. Sodhi
Presiding Officer
Sd/-
P. K. Malhotra
Member
Sd/-
S. S. N. Moorthy
Member
10.3.2011
Prepared & Compared by
ptm