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The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has moved the Supreme Court seeking directions on the non-payment of dues by Sahara India Real Estate Corporation and Sahara Housing Invest Corporation.
The move came after the much-publicised efforts by Sahara group chief Subrata Roy to negotiate the sale of foreign assets from a special facility in Tihar jail did not succeed. The regulator has sought a court-administered sale of assets to meet the dues.
The prison authorities had withdrawn the special facilities in the last week of last month after the proposed sale of foreign hotel assets of the group did not go through within the window provided by the court. “Sebi has filed for directions as they have not given any update with respect to the sale of assets,” said a source. The petition also raised doubts about Sahara's willingness to part with the assets despite getting offers from the buyers, the source added.
Roy and two directors of the two Sahara group firms cited above have been lodged in prison since early March for non-payment of dues to Sebi.
In August 2012, the court had ordered repayment of money raised by the two firms through issue of optionally fully convertible debentures, or OFCD, to 29.6 million investors. The firms had raised Rs 24,029 crore and were directed to repay this sum to the investors with an interest of 15 per cent a year.
Sebi later told the court that the dues had swelled to Rs 37,000 crore with interest. While the Sahara group has been claiming it has already repaid most of these investors, the regulator and the apex court have not found merit in the argument.
