NEW DELHI: Market regulator Sebi has put state-run Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) on notice and asked the oil refiner and fuel retailer to re-file by August 13 all filings on shareholding since January 2018 showing flagship explorer ONGC as its promoter or face action under Sebi Act.
In a missive sent on August 6, the regulator also asked HPCL to inform all stock exchanges as well as place it before the company board. The note comes in the wake of HPCL’s stubborn refusal to recongnise ONGC as its promoter since the latter acquired the government’s entire 51.11% stake in the company for Rs 36,915 crore in January 2018.
Even after the acquisition, all the six filings on shareholding by HPCL continued to list ONGC as a “public shareholder” and mentioned “President of India’’ as the “promoter”. During the long-running exchange on the issue between HPCL and the market regulator, HPCL on June 27 admitted that the Centre had advised it to add ONGC as a promoter below the President of India.
