 "Samir Modi purchased 250 GPI shares in Sebi norm breach: Godfrey Phillips")
Cigarette maker Godfrey Phillips India (GPI) has informed the BSE and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) about purchase of its 250 equity shares by Samir Modi, son of company chairperson and managing director Bina Modi.
The transaction occurred during the open trading window, in violation of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) regulations of 2015, and the company’s code of conduct.
“With reference to the Sebi circular, we would like to inform you about the purchase of 250 equity shares by a ‘designated person’ (DP) during the open trading window period, in violation of the Sebi (Prohibition of Insider Trading) Regulations, 2015 (Sebi PIT Regulations) and the company’s ‘Code of Conduct for Regulation, Monitoring and Reporting of Insider Trading’ (Code of Conduct), that is, purchasing without obtaining the requisite pre-clearance from the compliance officer of the company,” the letter stated.
The designated person mentioned in the letter is Samir Modi.
This development is the latest in the ongoing family and company dispute, in which Samir and his brother Lalit are contesting their mother Bina over an inheritance valued between Rs 11,000 crore and Rs 30,000 crore.
Bina has been at loggerheads with her son and executive director of Modi Enterprises, Samir Modi, who has accused her of orchestrating an attack on him during a company board meeting.
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Charu, Samir, and Lalit are the children of late K K Modi, who left behind a business conglomerate with interests in tobacco, direct selling, 24x7 retail, cosmetics, agrochemicals, and education, before his death in 2019.
The board of GPI had approved Bina’s reappointment as managing director and her daughter Charu’s reappointment as executive director for five years last year.
Samir was removed from Godfrey Phillips India’s board at a meeting on August 7 last year after fellow directors did not support his reappointment.
In his place, the company appointed Charu, daughter of Bina and sister to Samir and Lalit.
In an interview with Business Standard last year, Bina had said K K Modi’s legacy is “not for sale.”