The Securities and Exchange Board of India will complete its investigations by February into the alleged price manipulation by the A V Birla group company, Grasim, while buying shares of Larsen & Toubro.
"We will complete the investigation very quickly. I hope it will be done within a couple of months," Sebi Chairman G N Bajpai told reporters after signing a memorandum of agreement with his Mauritian counterpart, Baboo Gujadhar, chairman, Financial Services Commission.
He, however, declined to give details of the investigation of the deal of Grasim with Reliance for buying a 10.05 per cent stake in L&T in November 2001 at Rs 306 per share and the subsequent increase in its stake to a little over 14 per cent in tranches.
He also dismissed reports that Sebi had allowed the L&T board to discuss the demerger of its cement business.
Later, Grasim had made an open offer of Rs 190 per share and continued its purchases, through one of its subsidiaries, to take its holding beyond 15 per cent.
Last month, Sebi had asked Grasim not to go ahead with its open offer of buying additional shares of L&T at Rs 190 a share, before it completed its investigations.
Although Grasim moved the Securities Appellate Tribunal asking for interim relief, the tribunal last week upheld the Sebi advice to Grasim to stop the open offer for acquiring additional a 20 per cent stake in the engineering major.
