According to sources, the company has informed the regulator that it will go ahead with the offer only after the appellate authority gives its decision.In a related development, Bharti Enterprises has formally objected to SEBI's decision to disallow Sterling from selling its 9 per cent stake in BTL, which has already been bought by it.

Bharti Enterprises, along with its 100 per cent subsidiary Bharti Global, is currently in the process of acquiring an additional 24.53 per cent stake in BTL for which the open offer opened on May 18. Bharti Enterprises is also weighing the option of going in appeal to the appellate authority against the SEBI directive.

Accordingto sources, Bharti Enterprises has pointed out to SEBI that it bought the 9 per cent stake of Sterling only after it received the regulator's approval. This deal had, in fact, triggered the takeover code and forced it to make an open offer. This offer was also approved by SEBI.

Bharti Telecom has, in a separate letter, informed SEBI that its recent order has led to confusion among shareholders of the company.

"On the one hand SEBI allowed us to buy the 9 per cent stake from Sterling and on the other, they have asked Sterling not to sell the stake," said a Bharti Enterprises source. On May 18, the day Bharti Enterprises and Bharti Global's open offer for BTL opened, Sebi had directed SHRL to fulfil its open offer announcement made in November 1996 for acquiring 20 per cent stake in BTL at Rs 95 per share. It asked Sterling to make the offer within 15 days and at the same time directed it not to sell its 9 per cent stake in BTL. However, SHRL had already sold the stake to Bharti Enterprises bythen.

Sterling had, in 1996, bought 9 per cent in Bharti Telecom in a bid to take over the company. It announced an open offer to pick up 20 per cent at Rs 95 per share. Realising that it could not take over the company, it abandoned the offer. SEBI, however, disallowed Sterling from backing out of the offer at that time. Sterling went into appeal against this order to the appellate authority and on October 17, 1997, the appellate authority rejected Sterling's appeal while asking it to approach SEBI for an appropriate order.

Recently, Bharti Enterprises decided to make an open offer for hiking its stake in Bharti Telecom. This offer was preceded by the sale of the 9 per cent stake of Sterling to Bharti Enterprises. In addition, Bharti Enterprises had also bought a further 6.8 per cent stake in BTL through negotiated deals, which had triggered the takeover code prompting it to make the open offer.

The promoter holding in BTL before the open offer and the negotiated deals was 59.67 per cent (BhartiEnterprises 27.43 per cent, Bharti Overseas Trading Company 27.25 per cent, and Bharti Telecom Finance Ltd 4.99 per cent).