![Burman family announces open offer for Religare Enterprises](https://img.etimg.com/thumb/msid-105792520,width-300,height-225,imgsize-7316,resizemode-75/burman-family-announces-open-offer-for-religare-enterprises.jpg)
"The Burman family has not put forth any nomination for the board of REL," said an REL spokesperson.
However, a Burman family spokesperson told ET that REL had assured shareholders seats on the board, but as of now, no appointments have been made.
"We understand that apart from us, other large shareholders were also promised seats on the REL board, but no one has been put on the board to date despite raising this matter several times earlier," he said. "The fact is that there is no shareholders' representation on the board even though REL is a 100% public shareholder-led company."
REL's current board comprises six members, including chairperson Rashmi Saluja, who has an executive role, and five independent directors.
Burman's family had, through various entities, accumulated a 21.5% stake in REL by August. In September, it bought another 5.27% stake, triggering a mandatory open offer to buy an extra 26% stake from the public. The open offer was made at ₹235 on September 25, when the prevailing stock price was ₹256.
Shares of REL declined 20% since the announcement of the open offer and closed at ₹218.50 on Wednesday.
Initially, the REL management supported the open offer but later opposed it, citing undervaluation. The Burmans accused Saluja of opposing the open offer due to concerns about losing control.
![‘Burmans Yet to Designate Their Representative on REL Board’ ‘Burmans Yet to Designate Their Representative on REL Board’](https://img.etimg.com/photo/msid-42031747/et-logo.jpg)
"Saluja has orchestrated certain members of the board to deny the acquirers basic information so as to delay the transaction, but nevertheless, we will proceed and take appropriate recourse," a Dabur group official told ET. "The resistance shown by Saluja to our open offer, without any basis, is well-known; we do not have to describe this further."
On Saluja's claim of being a victim of corporate gender discrimination, the official said that the claim is merely a diversion tactic to shift focus from the core issues at hand.
"It is ironic that Saluja makes this remark when, throughout successive Extraordinary General Meetings (EGMs), we were the ones endorsing her position as the executive chairperson. We denounce such statements, particularly coming from a woman who holds leadership positions herself. These comments cast a shadow on Saluja personally."
On October 18, the independent directors of REL Enterprises wrote a letter to regulators such as Reserve Bank of India, Sebi and the insurance watchdog, levelling allegations of fraud and other breaches against the Burmans.
On October 26, entities controlled by the Burman family wrote to the board of REL seeking a probe into trades in the shares of the financial services firm by chairperson Saluja. Later, on November 8, the said complaint was sent to Sebi and the stock exchanges.
Both Burmans and Saluja denied any wrongdoing.
Burman's family accused Saluja of insider trading and said that governance issues were the reasons the management was opposing the open offer. "Saluja is concerned that our presence on the board could expose further corporate governance issues. We have never faced such issues in the companies that we have invested in the past. Eveready is the best example of that. Apart from the above, we are also working with many companies through strategic partnerships or joint ventures, including banks, insurance companies," said Burman.
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