Sebi settles case against Artech Power Products

Capital market regulator Sebi has settled a case relating to violation of disclosure norms against Artech Power Products after the company paid about Rs 7 lakh as settlement fee.
Artech Power Products had allegedly failed to make disclosures with regard to its shareholding pattern for the 1998-2011 period, within the prescribed time limit.
Passing a consent order on October 31, Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) said that "this settlement order disposes of the said adjudication proceedings pending in respect of the applicant (Artech Power Products)."
Accordingly, the regulator had issued a show cause notice to the company with regard to alleged violations.

Subsequent to show cause notice, the company had proposed to settle the case against it by offering Rs 7,09,750 as settlement charges under Sebi's consent order mechanism.
Thereafter, Sebi's High Powered Advisory Committee (HPAC) considered and recommended that the case can be settled on payment of the proposed amount following which the company made the payment.

The HPAC recommendations were also accepted by the panel of whole time members of Sebi, following which the company has remitted the amount to the market regulator.
As per the Sebi consent order, the regulator could take enforcement actions, including reopening of the pending proceedings against Artech Power Products, if any representation made by the company are found to be untrue.

Under consent mechanism, entities can seek to settle cases with the regulator after payment of certain charges and other expenses without admission of guilt.