SAT modifies earlier order on ZEEL

New Delhi The Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) on Thursday modified its earlier order and allowed Sebi to appoint an authorised officer to decide the alleged fund diversion case involving Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd’s promoters Punit Goenka and Subhash Chandra.

This was permitted due to a lack of whole-time members (WTM) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). “We direct Sebi to appoint another WTM, and if no WTM is available, then any authorised officer higher in grade or rank or position to the WTM would hear and decide the matter...The person who is appointed shall pass the order within the stipulated period,” SAT said in its order. The order came after the capital markets regulator appealed to SAT to modify the appellate tribunal order passed on July 10 that directed it to appoint another WTM other than the WTM who had passed the order on June 12 in the ZEEL (Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd) case. This was done to remove bias.