Bajaj family to raise stake in BHIL

Industrial house Bajaj family will raise its stake in group's holding company Bajaj Holdings & Investment Ltd (BHIL) and funds for this would be garnered by part-sale of stakes in other group firms, family patriarch Rahul Bajaj said today.

"We will increase our stake (in BHIL). We will sell some shares in group companies and then increase the holding (in BHIL)," Bajaj told PTI.

He, however, declined to give details how much stake the promoters plan to hike in BHIL or in which group companies the family members will sell stake.

"Everything will be done within the family," Bajaj, who is the Chairman of Bajaj Auto, said.

According to the latest shareholding pattern available on the National Stock Exchange website, the promoters currently hold 31.36 per cent stake in BHIL, the promoter group entity of the country's second largest two-wheeler maker Bajaj Auto.

Meanwhile, on reports of promoters raising their stake in BHIL to 50 per cent, the shares of BHIL touched a high of Rs 603 in the day. The scrip finally settled flat at Rs 589.35.

Earlier last month, five promoters of Bajaj Auto -- Shekhar Bajaj, Geetika Bajaj, Ruparani Bajaj, Anant Bajaj and Anant Trust -- sold over 10 lakh shares to BHIL for Rs 180.45 crore. Each share was sold between Rs 1,715 and Rs 1,730.

In a separate deal on that day, Rahul Bajaj, also the promoter of Bajaj Electricals, sold his 35.35 lakh shares to Shekhar and Anant Bajaj through an open market deal. Rahul Bajaj had also sold 3.25 lakh shares in Hercules Hoists to Baja Auto Holdings.

In 2008, the Bajaj brothers had reached an amicable settlement, bringing to an end the six-year dispute over the division of the family's business empire. According to the agreement, the Rahul Bajaj-led group, comprising Rahul, Shekhar, Madhur and Niraj, would exit Bajaj Hindusthan and Bajaj Consumer Care, which would be with Shishir Bajaj.

All other companies in the original Bajaj Group, including Bajaj Auto, Bajaj Electricals, Mukund, Bajaj Finserv, BHIL and Hercules Hoist, would be with the Rahul Bajaj-led group.

The Bajaj family feud first hit headlines in 2002, with Shishir accusing elder brother Rahul of trying to oust him from the chairmanship of Bajaj Sevashram, one of the group holding companies.