Zee dispute: SAT holds Punit Goenka's appeal of the SEBI ban

27 Sep 2023 , 03:39 PM

The former CEO of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL), who is now barred from holding the position of director or other important managerial roles in ZEEL and other companies, filed an appeal with the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) on September 27.

Goenka was represented by senior attorney Abhishek Manu Singhvi, and the Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) was represented by senior attorney Darius Khambata.

After hearing the request for more than five sessions starting on August 30, the appellate tribunal reserved decisions in the case. The SAT stated orally at the hearing that it was dissatisfied with how long the market regulator took to conduct its probe, adding that ‘SEBI can’t keep going with its investigation.’ It further mentioned that the subject is of public concern because ZEEL and Sony just merged.

The SEBI was further questioned by SAT over its ability to complete the inquiry of Punit Goenka. The appeal tribunal further noted that SEBI frequently requested an extension of time to look into claims made by the Supreme Court or the SAT.

Subash Chandra and Goenka, the former directors of ZEEL, were issued revised instructions by SEBI in August, requesting its investigators to wrap up their investigation in eight months. Additionally, it prohibited them from occupying important administrative roles until the probe was finished.

The market regulator claimed that the pair assisted in removing money from ZEEL and then returned the money to the business through convoluted and complicated operations. According to the statement, they did this by ‘falsely representing that ZEEL had received the dues from associate entities.’

Chandra and Goenka had allegedly ‘abused their positions’ for individual financial advantage, according to SEBI. It was observed that the media company situated in Mumbai had fabricated loan repayments in order to pay for private financing transactions made by its founder Chandra.

The National Company Law Tribunal’s (NCLT) approval of the merger of ZEEL with Culver Max Entertainment, formerly Sony Pictures Networks India, coincides with these developments.

Zee Entertainment and Sony Pictures agreed to integrate their businesses in December 2021.

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