The proceedings were initiated against REL, Saluja and directors Malay Kumar Sinha, Hamid Ahmed, Praveen Kumar Tripathi, Ranjan Dwivedi and Preeti Madan.
The dispute arose after MB Finmart Private Limited, Puran Associates Private Limited, VIC Enterprises Private Limited and Milky Investment & Trading Company, collectively referred to as the Burman Group, announced an open offer for REL in September 2023.
The Burman Group, which then held 21.54 per cent in REL, proposed to acquire a further 26 per cent at ₹235 per share for a total consideration of about ₹2,116 crore.
Between October 2023 and June 2024, REL made several representations to SEBI objecting to the proposed offer and raising concerns about the acquirers. The Burman Group, in turn, complained to SEBI about the alleged absence of cooperation from REL.
SEBI subsequently asked REL to apply to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) and SEBI for the regulatory approvals required to proceed with the offer.
