Bina Modi reappointed as Godfrey Phillips India MD; Charu Modi named ED

Bina Modi has been reappointed as the managing director of Godfrey Phillips India with 86.6% approval from shareholders at the annual general meeting of the company on Friday, according to the company's filing to the exchanges.

Meanwhile, the vacancy caused by the retirement by rotation of her son Samir Modi will not be filled up for the time being, with shareholders' approval of 99%, the company told the exchanges.

Bina Modi’s daughter Charu Modi has been appointed as the executive director of the company with 87% approval.

This development comes in the middle of the inheritance battle among the Modi family.

The Delhi High Court had on Thursday cleared the way for Bina Modi, widow of industrialist K K Modi, to vote as a managing trustee of the K K Modi Family Trust at the 87th annual general meeting (AGM) of Godfrey Phillips India (GPI) on September 6, rejecting her grandson Ruchir Modi’s plea to stop her from voting.

“I find no merit in the present application. The same is dismissed,” Justice Navin Chawla said.

The court has also directed Bina Modi to file an affidavit on a half-yearly basis on the remuneration and benefits she received as managing director (MD) of the company. It also said if it passed a direction against her appointment as MD, then she would resign without claiming equity, and this should be stated at the 87th AGM on Friday. The board of directors of GPI had approved Bina Modi’s reappointment as managing director and her daughter Charu Modi’s reappointment as executive director for five years, and this came up for voting at the AGM.

Samir Modi was removed from Godfrey Phillips India’s board at a meeting on August 7 after fellow directors did not support his reappointment. In his place, the company appointed Charu Modi, daughter of Bina Modi and sister to Samir and Lalit Modi.

This decision is part of an ongoing family 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.

Charu, Samir, and Lalit are the children of the late K K Modi, who left behind a business conglomerate with interests in tobacco, direct selling, 24/7 retail, cosmetics, agrochemicals, and education before he died in 2019.