Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has denied to revoke its interim directions against P S Saminathan, managing director, Pyramid Saimira Theatre Ltd (PSTL). It may be noted last year the market regulator barred Saminathan and others from trading in national markets on account of forgery.
Saminathan had moved a request to Sebi to withdraw the interim directions. Responding to which in his order on Monday evening, K M Abraham, whole time member, SEBI said that: “I am of the view that Saminathan has not made out a case for revoking or modifying the directions issued against him vide the Order. Therefore, at this stage, when the investigation is in an advanced state, I do not find this is a fit case to revoke the ad interim directions issued against him (Saminathan)."
Saminathan and one of Nirmal Kotecha’s associates, had allegedly made misleading public announcements to create interest in Pyramid Saimira’s scrip.
It may be recalled in November last year the regulator banned PSTL for seven years from the market. According to Sebi the allotment of 4,22,200 shares reserved for employees (employee category) by PSTL in its initial public offer in December 2006 and allotted 98.5 per cent of shares under the employee category to seven persons who were not its employees.
These seven persons donned the cloak of ‘employee’ on the eve of the public issue for 4 -6 months, applied for shares in the employee category and received the allotment, sold the shares soon after listing and made an unlawful gain of Rs 2.31 crore, according to SEBI's order.
The IPO was oversubscribed 15.5 times in the retail category, 28.09 times in the HNI category, 17.18 times in the QIB category and only 0.015 times in the employee category (excluding the applications made by the seven persons). But for the artifice employed by PSTL and the seven persons, there would have been a shortfall in subscription in the employee category, which would have gone to other categories having over subscription.
PSTL reported a loss of Rs 5.20 crore during the quarter ended March 31, 2010 as compared to profit of Rs 14.06 crore during the same period last year, according to company's announcement in BSE. Company's income during the quarter was nil compared to Rs 80.69 crore, during the same period a year ago.