Transfer 6 million shares held by Raju family to escrow account: ED to Gland Pharma

Hyderabad: The ED has instructed Gland Pharma to transfer its six million shares owned by companies promoted by Satyam Computers'' B Ramalinga Raju and his kin to an escrow account following the city-based drug company''s Initial Public Offering (IPO), a senior executive of the Gland Pharma said on Wednesday.

Ten firms owned by Raju and his family members held six lakh shares with Rs 10 of each share (later they became six million with each shares face value Rs one). After the Satyam multi-crore scandal broke out in 2009 and subsequent developments, the ED which filed cases against Raju and others had attached the shares and directed Gland Pharma not to transfer, dispose, remove, part with or otherwise deal with them in any manner until further instruction from it.

"There is no risk in terms of Ramalinga Raju''s shares, because they invested in the company (Gland Pharma) in the late 90s. And then they offloaded a few of the shares. And these are the leftover shares when the issue happened and they were attached by the Enforcement Directorate (ED)," Srinivas Sadhu, MD and CEO of Gland Pharma said in a virtual press conference.

He was responding to a query about the risk factors of the shares beingheld by Rajus firms. "It (attachment of shares) is completely privy to the party and the ED had nothing to do with the company. These shares, what we are offering today are not part of that. Whatever ED says we are following. Now they wanted us to transfer (the shares) to an escrow account and that is being done," Sadhu said.

Gland Pharma announced that its about Rs 6,500 crore Initial Public Offer (IPO) has set a price band of Rs1,490- 1,500 per share (face value of Rs one) and the issue will be open on November 9. The attached shares represent 3.87 percent of the pre- offer paid-up equity share capital of the company and are currently held by 10 companies. These firms are not related to Gland Pharma or its promoters, promoter group, directors or key managerial personnel, the company said in its IPO prospectus.

Replying to a query on the several restrictions being imposed by the Centre on Chinese companies, Sadhu said they don''t foresee any issues as Gland Pharma is in the healthcare sector. Gland Pharma was founded by P V N Raju in 1978 and Chinese Fosun Pharma acquired 74 percent stake in the company in 2017.