EGM stalemate still on; legal opinion sought

ICICI Bank says merger resolution passed by a majority.

The impasse over the status of Bank of Rajasthan’s (BoR's) extraordinary general meeting (EGM) continued for a second day as chief executive G Padmanabham said the bank is awaiting clarity from its legal advisors, even as shareholders who held a separate meeting claimed it was legal.

The bank has referred the issue to its legal advisors, Fox and Mandal, after a city civil court in Kolkata stayed the EGM, only to be lifted almost immediately by the Kolkata High Court which was moved by ICICI Bank on the issue.

ICICI Bank and BoR were scheduled to hold their respective EGMs on Monday in Baroda and Mumbai to seek shareholders' approval for a merger. “We need to give them (the lawyers) reasonable time. These are specific circumstances,” Bank of Rajasthan chief executive G Padmanabhan said over the phone.

Meanwhile, the group of shareholders who had held their own 'parallel' meeting after the BoR board members left the venue due to the Kolkata civil court's stay, said the meeting was legal.

“It is a valid and legal meeting, according to the Reserve Bank of India's provisions,” said D V Lakhani, chairman of the group of shareholders who had decided to hold their own meeting the bank's management cancelled the EGM.

Of the 6,900 ballots cast in the poll at the meet, about 99 per cent members of those present and 85 per cent by value favoured the proposal for merger with ICICI Bank, Lakhani said. The shareholders have sent their report to the National Stock Exchange, Bombay Stock Exchange, the Jaipur Stock Exchange and ICICI Bank.

Meanwhile, ICICI Bank said in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange that its resolution for amalgamation of Bank of Rajasthan with it was passed by a majority. About 99.99 per cent of the valid votes cast were in favour of the merger, the statement said.Shares of ICICI Bank fell 0.9 per cent to Rs 893.15 by close of Tuesday's trade on the Bombay Stock Exchange.