Swc To Shift Registered Office To Mumbai

The M R Chhabria-controlled Rs 609.30 crore Shaw Wallace and Company Limited (SWC) has decided to shift its registered office from Wallace House here to Mumbai in Maharashtra.

A special resolution seeking shareholders' permission will be placed during the company's 55th annual general meeting.

The company had moved its operational offices to Mumbai some years ago because Maharashtra was the biggest market for its main business of liquor and beers. As a result, most company officials were based in Mumbai, and shifting of the registered office would enable them to have better control over the activities, sources said.

In the past, SWC had other businesses such as plantations and shipping that had a clear eastern focus, but after the sale of these businesses, alcohol became its main business, sources pointed out. Also, the transfer of interest in Calcutta Chemicals, a subsidiary manufacturing cosmetics, cut off the last links that held SWC to the city.

Till some years ago, SWC was one of the biggest employers in the city along with another Chhabria company, Dunlop India. Some months ago, there were confrontations between a section of the company's management and staff over use of the registered office. Incidentally, Tinplate India Ltd, a Tata company, was one of the tenants of the buildings, sources said. SWC still has breweries in West Bengal but overall, its operations had shrunk in size, they admitted.

The resolution seeks to delete clause 2 of SWC's memorandum of association which stipulated that the registered office of the company will be situated in the state of West Bengal by substituting that "the registered office of the company will be situated in the state of Maharashtra."

The company said that after the consent of the members was obtained, the said proposal would be submitted to the Company Law Board for approval under the provisions of Section 17(2) of the Companies Act.

The resolution is likely to get approval as Chhabria had over 50 per cent stake in the company.