HYDERABAD, February 27: Family patriarch and promoter of Raasi Cements Ltd (RCL), Dr B V Raju who had promised in December a "fight to the finish" in the event of a hostile bid on the company got together his war council for an extended strategy session today in the wake of the latest bid by India Cements Ltd (ICL).While he is understood to have despatched managing director K V Vishnu Raju to Mumbai on Thursday to lobby with the FIs for their support, Raju is said to be contemplating a two-pronged response to the latest threat from India Cement's N Srinivasan.
The ICL boss picked up a further 8.28 per cent equity from B V Raju's son-in-law and vice chairman and managing director N K P Raju and associates on a spot basis setting off the alarm bells in the Raju household which had been denying all rumours of a rift within family for several months now.
Just recovering from the skirmish in December when Srinivasan had picked up close to five per cent of the company stock from the market, the Rajus areexploring several options to block the open offer from the Chennai based company for a 20% Raasi equity at a price of Rs 300 per share.
The Raasi management is understood to be considering the option of either approaching the courts or making a counter offer to the ICL public announcement in the event of SEBI permitting ICL to go ahead with the public offer.
While it was yet to finalise the course of action till late this evening, the RCL management maintained all the remaining promoters stood together. Without naming him the management in a statement today said despite the conduct of N K P Raju in attempting to destabilise the company, it continues to have a controling interest and stake in Raasi.
In a related development the Raasi management seems to have earned a breather till March 11 by blocking the transfer of the earlier lot of shares acquired by Srinivasan in December from the market.
The transfer of the 3,26,050 shares has been blocked by RCL citing "stop transfer instruction" received by itfrom the registered holder of the scrips in the wake of a status quo order passed by the City Civil Courts at Hyderabad.
In a communication to ICL, Raasi cement had also held that the moping up of additional shares over above the eight lakh equity shares acquired by the former as part of an earlier understanding with the promoters of RCL, was tentamount to an acquisition with the intention of a takeover to eliminate competition. Registering the fresh lot of shares acquired by Srinivasan in December would therefore be prejudicial to the interests of the company and the public and the board had thus decided to refuse the transfer of the shares, it said.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
