Stock exchanges have slapped fines on state-owned oil and fuel corporations together with IOC, ONGC and GAIL for their failure to meet listing necessities
| Photo Credit: Reuters
Stock exchanges have slapped fines on state-owned oil and fuel corporations together with IOC, ONGC and GAIL for their failure to meet listing necessities of getting a requisite variety of impartial administrators and girls administrators.
In separate filings, the businesses detailed the fines imposed by the BSE and NSE however have been fast to level out that appointment of administrators was completed by the federal government and so they had no position in it.
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) was slapped a ₹3.36 lakh advantageous, whereas Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) was requested to pay ₹5.36 lakh advantageous.
Gas utility GAIL was slapped ₹2.71 lakh advantageous, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) ₹3.59 lakh, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) ₹3.6 lakh, Oil India Ltd ₹5.37 lakh and a advantageous of ₹5.37 lakh was imposed on Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL).
Except for IOC which was slapped with the advantageous for not having the required one girl director on the board, all the businesses have been fined for violating the norm of getting the required variety of impartial administrators.
IOC mentioned the ability to appoint administrators (together with impartial and girls administrators) vests with the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India.
“And hence the non-appointment of women independent directors on the Board during the quarter ended June 30, 2023 was not due to any negligence / fault by the company,” it mentioned. “Accordingly, Indian Oil should not be held liable to pay the fines and the same should be waived-off”.
IOC mentioned it frequently takes up the difficulty with the ministry, for appointment of requisite variety of impartial administrators (together with Woman impartial director), to guarantee compliance with company governance norms.
“We would also like to inform that the company had received similar notices from the BSE and NSE in the past imposing fines and waiver requests from the company was considered favourably by the exchanges,” it mentioned.
HPCL made the same submitting and cited previous document of inventory exchanges waiving such fines.
ONGC mentioned it has requested the federal government for nomination of the requisite variety of impartial administrators on the board of the corporate.
“Since the appointment of directors is beyond control of the company, request letters have been submitted to stock exchanges for waiving off the fine levied,” ONGC mentioned.
BPCL mentioned it had complied with the necessities for the monetary 12 months 2022-23 and until April 30, 2023.
But the appointment of a full-time administrators with impact from May 1, 2023 led to BPCL having 5 whole-time Directors, two nominee administrators of the federal government and 6 impartial administrators.
As per norm, BPCL ought to have had seven impartial administrators – equal to the manager administrators (5 whole-time administrators and two authorities nominee administrators).
BPCL mentioned it has “requested the Government of India from time to time for the nomination of one independent director. As the directors are appointed after receipt of nomination from Government of India. BPCL has no control over the appointment of Directors.”
The agency mentioned it is going to be approaching BSE Limited and National Stock Exchange of India Limited for waiver of the fines. “Similar letters were received earlier from the stock exchanges for which waiver request was made by BPCL and the same was considered favorably by the stock exchanges,” the submitting mentioned.
Oil India Ltd (OIL) mentioned the non-compliance was past the management of the corporate as it’s a authorities enterprise and administrators are appointed by the executive ministry, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
MRPL mentioned it’s following up with the federal government from time to time for appointing the required variety of administrators on its board.
GAIL mentioned, “all the directors on the board of GAIL (including independent directors) are nominated/appointed by the Government of India. As such, appointments are outside the purview/control of the GAIL’s management.”