The Free Press Journal

Sahara sells Grosvenor House, SC reprieve on full deposit

The apex court gives Sahara time till July 4 to deposit Rs 7.1 bn more

- AGENCIES

Sahara Group has sold its stake in iconic Grosvenor House hotel in London, and is waiting for a few clearances to deposit the money with the Securities and Exchange Board of India, it informed the Supreme Court on Monday.

The beleaguere­d business group has also deposited Rs 7.9 bn with the SEBI in the past few week following the SC's order in April to deposit Rs 15 bn to extend the parole of Subrata Roy, the head of the Sahara Group.

The court on Monday allowed Sahara to pay Rs 7.1 bn by July 4. A bench of by Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Ranjan Gogoi said it will hear the case next on July 5.

The court on Monday warned that Roy will have to return to prison if the company fails to deposit the money. After spending more than two years in Tihar jail the business tycoon came out on parole in May last year. The company and the market regulator SEBI also informed the apex court that official liquidator of the Bombay high court has finalised terms, conditions and schedule for the auction of the Pune based, Aamby Valley project.The court also instructed SEBI to auction of 87.03 acre of land owned by Sahara in Haridwar, after the group had submitted before the court that the offer it was getting from a buyer was 38% below the circle rate, reports Cogencies.

According to the capital market regulator, Sahara owes Rs 360 bn to its 30 mn investors which the group raised in violation of SEBI norms. He is now out on parole, which is extended by the court on meeting certain conditions such as time deposit with the SEBI of the money collected from depositors.

PTI ADDS: The apex court had on May 6, 2016 granted Roy four-week parole to attend his mother's funeral. His parole has been extended by the court ever since. Roy was sent to Tihar jail on March 4, 2014.

Besides Roy, two other directors, Ravi Shankar Dubey and Ashok Roy Choudhary, were also arrested for the failure of two group companies, Sahara India Real Estate Corporatio­n (SIRECL) and Sahara Housing Investment Corp Ltd (SHICL), to comply with the court's August 31, 2012 order to return Rs 24,000 crore to their investors. Director Vandana Bhargava was not taken into custody.

 ??  ?? Subrata Roy, the head of the Sahara Group
Subrata Roy, the head of the Sahara Group

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