MUMBAI: The Securities and Exchange Board of India on Friday slapped a monetary penalty of Rs 13 crore on Reliance Industries Ltd for violating certain clauses of the listing agreement. The matter relates to the issue of Rs 12 crore warrants by RIL on a preferential basis to a few promoter group entities in 2007 entitling the warrant holders to acquire equivalent number of fully paid up equity shares at a later date.
According to complaint received by SEBI, RIL failed to disclose DEPS with the stock exchanges upon conversion of those Rs 12 crore warrant.
SEBI noted that the specific quantum of any direct or indirect unfair gain made by RIL and the loss caused to the investor or group of investors are not available on records.
“However, the fact cannot be ignored that millions of shareholders or investors were deprived of correct disclosures about diluted EPS. As regards to the repetitive nature of default since the company failed to disclose the diluted EPS repeatedly for the six quarters, an appropriate penalty needs to be imposed upon the Noticee (RIL), taking into account the gravity of the violations committed,” said the SEBI order.
The company has been directed to pay the penalty amount within 45 days from the receipt of the order.
In a statement refuting the allegations RIL said, “The issue relates to the method of calculation of diluted EPS under the Accounting Standards. The issue is not of non-disclosure. It can be observed from the results published by the company of all the quarters in question that both basic and diluted EPS have been disclosed.”
It said the company in its arguments and written submission has brought out all the relevant clauses of the Accounting Standards to substantiate why basic EPS and diluted EPS were same in all the quarters.
