Wipro share sale: Sebi fines individual for delayed disclosure

Markets regulator Sebi has imposed a penalty of Rs 2 lakh on Sandeep Bhatnagar for delay in disclosing sale of Wipro shares as an employee in 2015.
It could not immediately ascertained whether Bhatnagar is still an employee at Wipro as there is no specific mention about his current status in the Sebi order.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) initiated adjudication proceedings against Bhatnagar, who was alleged to have not complied with PIT (Prohibition of Insider Trading) Regulations.
A probe conducted by Sebi found that Bhatnagar, after seeking pre-clearance from Wipro on July 27, 2015, sold 2,237 shares of the IT major on August 3, 2015 for an estimated Rs 12,77,998.

Since the traded value was in excess of Rs 10 lakh, he ought to have made disclosures to Wipro within two trading days of sale of shares -- by August 5, 2015 under the PIT Regulations, the regulator said.
However, he had made the disclosure by August 10, 2015.

"I am of the view that the noticee (Bhatnagar) has delayed the disclosure of his sale of shares amounting to Rs 12,77,998 by four days," Sebi General Manager and Adjudicating Officer Rachna Anand said in an order dated August 29.
He has violated the PIT Regulations by delaying the mandated disclosure.

Accordingly, the regulator has imposed a fine of Rs 2 lakh on Bhatnagar.
Under the PIT regulations, every promoter, employee and director of a company will have to disclose about the number of such securities acquired or disposed of within two trading days of such transaction to the company in case value of such securities traded aggregates to over Rs 10 lakh.