Sebi slaps three-year ban on DLF, six top executives

Mumbai: In a major blow to DLF, Sebi has barred the realty major as well as its six top executives, including chairman and main promoter K P Singh, from the securities market for three years for "active and deliberate suppression" of material information at the time of its IPO.

Besides K P Singh, those barred from the markets include his son Rajiv Singh (Vice Chairman), daughter Pia Singh (Whole Time Director), Managing Director T C Goyal, former CFO Ramesh Sanka and Kameshwar Swarup, who was ED-Legal at the time of the company's public offer in 2007.

After its over four-year-long probe, Sebi found that a "case of active and deliberate suppression of any material information so as to mislead and defraud the investors in the securities market in connection with the issue of shares of DLF in its IPO is clearly made out in this case."

In his 43-page order, Sebi's Whole-Time Member Rajeev Agarwal said that violations are grave and have larger implications on safety and integrity of the securities market.

While the regulator has not imposed any monetary penalty, the restraining order would bar DLF and the six persons, from any sale, purchase or any other dealings in securities markets for a period of three years, including for raising funds.

Sebi said that all these six persons were part of top management at the time of filing IPO documents, wherein the company was accused of non-disclosure of certain dealings with three subsidiaries through "sham transactions".

DLF's IPO in 2007 had fetched Rs 9,187 crore.

While Singh, his two children and Goyal are still on the board of DLF, Sanka is no more with the company. DLF is the largest real estate group in the country with nearly Rs 10,000 crore annual turnover and market capitalisation of over Rs 26,000 crore. The company's market cap had crossed Rs one lakh crore mark soon after its listing in 2007, but fell later.

The company and its top executives were found to have violated various regulations including Sebi's Disclosure and Investor Protection (DIP) Guidelines and the PFUTP (Prevention of Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices) norms.

The Singh family and related entities are major promoters with 74.91 per cent stake of DLF, which has been finding itself in regulatory crosshairs often in recent times, including action from fair trade regulator CCI.

DLF did not offer any comments on the order.