The Supreme Court on Friday asked Sahara and SEBI to formulate mechanism for securing payment of around Rs 19,000 crore (Rs 190 billion) of investors' money after the Subrata Roy-led group agreed to pledge it's immovable property as security but the market regulator questioned the sale deed and worth of the properties.
The finance ministry and several agencies under it such as the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which are investigating the affairs of Sahara India Parivar, are worried about its exposure to National Spot Exchange Ltd (NSEL) products.
The Tribunal adjourned till Monday this matter, which was listed for 'admission' this morning.
The sale is to generate the bail money for the release of Sahara Group chief Subrata Roy.
While Sahara maintains it has already repaid more than 93 per cent of the outstanding dues directly to the concerned bondholders and the remaining amount was just about Rs 2,500 crore (Rs 25 billion), it deposited Rs 5,120 crore (Rs 51.2 billion) to Sebi in December 2012 towards the investor refunds as per Supreme Court orders.
All three have cited personal reasons for giving up thepositions.
The Sahara Group had earlier sought 18 months' time to repay around Rs 9,000 crore balance amount of the principal amount of Rs 24,000 crore.
Sebi sets Sept 30 deadline to apply for Sahara refund
Genuine investments identified so far is Rs.1.08 cr out of around Rs 24,000 cr.
The bench asked the official liquidator, attached with the Bombay high court, to auction Aamby Valley properties, estimated to be worth Rs 34,000 crore, and directly report to it
Refuting the contention of Roy who had submitted that he cannot be penalised for non-refund of the money by Sahara India Real Estate Corp Ltd and Sahara India Housing Investment Corp Ltd, the market regulator said that the business tycoon held 70 per cent stake in the companies and liable for contempt of court punishable upto to six months imprisonment or fine.
The apex court on August 31 last year directed the two Sahara group companies to refund the money to their investors within three months with 15 per cent interest per annum.
Sebi says it will directly transfer the refund money to the bank accounts of genuine investors.
SEBI on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that Sahara group overvalued its properties and did not hand over all original title deeds of assets worth Rs 20,000 crore (Rs 200 billion) as per its direction.
Sahara says awaiting further clarity on issue from regulator, suggests 'human error' or investor confusion led to mismatch.
Sebi says Sahara investors refunded over Rs 42 cr.
Citing the SC order in Sahara case, Sebi has passed orders against at least five companies and 21 individuals charged with collecting thousands of crores fraudulently
Excerpted from Sahara: The Untold Story by Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
As many as 3,268 title deeds in Sebi's possession would undergo scrutiny and be prepared for sale.
A bank account is a must to get the refund and those without it have been asked by Sebi to open an account with a scheduled bank.
The apex court was irked when Sebi claimed that the group had allegedly obstructed the process by writing a letter to the Pune police raising the issue of law and order at the prime property.
The apex court told Roy that his proposal of paying Rs 1,500 crore, if the auction process was halted or postponed, was unbelievable.
Unable to verify or trace a large number of bondholders in Sahara refund case, Sebi has begun a process to consult the business conglomerate for verifying the genuineness of such investors.
The income tax (IT) department seems to have quietly thrown a spanner in the works on the Securities and Exchange board of India (Sebi)'s two-year-long efforts to implement the Supreme Court order against the two Sahara group firms Sahara India Real Estate Corporation (SIRECL) and Sahara Housing Invest Corporation (SHICL).
Sahara Group chief Subrata Roy will not be allowed to leave the country with the Supreme Court today refusing to relax its order restraining him from going abroad till his company furnishes details of refunding Rs 20,000 crore of investors money.
Besides Roy, two other directors, Ravi Shankar Dubey and Ashok Roy Choudhary, were also arrested for the failure of two group companies.
Holding that it was playing "hide and seek" and cannot be trusted any more, the Supreme Court on Monday directed the Sahara group to hand over title deeds of its properties worth Rs 20,000 crore (Rs 200 billion) to SEBI warning that failure to comply would mean Subrata Roy cannot leave India.
Roy's plea was mentioned before a bench comprising justices K S Radhakrishnan and J S Khehar which said he has to appear on Wednesday.
Subrata Roy has been in a Delhi jail since March 4 after failing to appear at a contempt hearing in his group's legal battle with the Securities and Exchange Board of India over the company's failure to repay investors who bought the outlawed bonds.
Senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Sahara, has sought time till August 15 for realisation of the cheque and giving a road map for depositing the remaining amount.
The apex court also asked Sahara Group to provide it within two weeks the list of 'unencumbered properties' which can be put on public auction.
Owners of Pune-based Serum Institute of India, the Poonawalla's have thrown the hat to acquire the iconic Grosvenor Hotel in UK from Sahara Group.
The group needs to rustle up Rs 5,000 crore in cash and an equal amount in bank guarantees for bail.
Suitors came with all-cash offers but were rebuffed
Market regulator in talks with SBI Caps, UTI Infra for scrutiny and auction of properties.
Sahara cousel Kapil Sibal said he was preparing an application.
The Sahara group on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that its chief Subrata Roy is not liable for refunding Rs 24,000 crore (Rs 240 billion) collected by its two firms from investors, countering the arguments of SEBI, which wanted his passport to be impounded till the contempt plea against him and companies is decided.
After selling land in Gurgaon for Rs 1,211 crore recently, the Sahara group is believed to have finalised two more realty deals, one in Mumbai and another in Jodhpur, for Rs 1,250 crore.
Sahara Group got other much-needed relief with the apex court lifting its embargo of permitting it to sell only 19 properties.
Sahara has ploughed at least Rs 1,500 crore from two of its credit cooperatives into the Aamby Valley resort project
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