Sebi bars 12 entities, directs them to refund over Rs 5.3 crore

MUMBAI: Clamping down on illegal money raising activities, Sebi today barred 12 entities, including 10 individuals, from the capital market for at least three years while ordering them to refund more than Rs 5.32 crore.

The capital market watchdog has banned Madurai Rural Development Benefit Fund (India) and Madurai Rural Development Transformation India along with 10 individuals.

The individuals who have been restrained from accessing the securities market are Mohammed Yusuff Suresh Batcha, Gopalarathinam Ramarathinam, Srinivasan Srikumar, Vasudevan Balaji, Kasiviswanathan Venkataraman, Nagasubramanian Rajalakshmi, Sudhakaran Lataji, Mumtaj Begam Baba, Sithikbasha Mohamed Yusuf and Lilun Nihar Yousuff.

In a 19-page order, the regulator has directed these entities to "jointly and severally refund Rs 5,32,34,400 collected pursuant to the allotment of shares (i.e. Rs 4,99,22,400 collected by MRDT and Rs 33,12,000 collected by MRDF)".

The amount has to be refunded along with 15 per cent annual interest rate from the date of receipt of money till the date of such refund in the manner.

Citing its interim order in the matter, Sebi said: "MRDT and MRDF have been found rampantly soliciting deposits from the public and are issuing equities to such persons in order to make them 'members' before 'deposit holders' and soliciting 'fixed deposits/recurring deposits' from such members".

The 10 individuals have also been restrained from associating themselves, with any listed public company and any public company which intends to raise money from the public, for three years or till the date of refund of money to the allottees whichever is later.

In a separate proceeding, Economic Offences Wing of Tamil Nadu Police (EOW) -- based on the complaints received from various depositors -- has taken steps to freeze the accounts and land holdings of MRDT group of companies and its directors.