Kalyani Family Dispute: Hikal Promoters Make Disclosures To SEBI
The promoters of Hikal include Baba Kalyani's sister Sugandha Hiremath, her husband Jai Hiremath, and their son Sameer Hiremath among others.
Hikal Ltd. promoters on Monday have made disclosures of family deed documents from the years 1993 and 1994 to Securities and Exchange Board of India, as per an exchange filing. This is in relation to the multi-forum Kalyani family dispute.
The promoters of Hikal include Sugandha Hiremath, her husband Jai Hiremath, and their son Sameer Hiremath among others. Sugandha is the sister of Bharat Forge Ltd. Chairman Baba Kalyani.
In 1993, Baba Kalyani reached a family agreement with his father Neelkanth Kalyani. The agreement mentioned that the shares of Hikal, which are controlled by the Kalyani group, would go to the Hiremath family. Meanwhile, the property share of Baba Kalyani’s mother, Sulochana Kalyani, will go to the youngest son, Gaurishankar Kalyani.
The following agreement from 1994 between Baba Kalyani and his father, Neelkanth, further reiterated that the shares of Hikal would go to the Hiremath family. Additionally, the agreement mentioned that Baba would inherit the control of the Kalyani group.
On the other hand, the Hiremath family have initiated proceedings against Baba Kalyani before the Bombay High Court, for dishonoring these two deeds. The submissions against Baba mention that he did not transfer the Hikal shares, as mentioned in the family agreements and benefited from the current arrangements.
Meanwhile, a family dispute is continuing before a Pune court where Sugandha Hiremath has asked for one-third of Kalyani family wealth, which reportedly exceeds Rs 1 lakh crore. If Hiremath’s claims are upheld, it could potentially impact the ownership structure of Kalyani group companies.
Hiremath’s primary contention revolves around the argument that the wealth under the Kalyani banner was created using capital inherited from their grandfather, Annappa Narayan Kalyani, and thus belongs to the Kalyani Hindu Undivided Family.
At present, Baba Kalyani, aged 76, serves as the Karta (head) of the Kalyani HUF.
Kalyan Investment Co's response
The company emphasises that it is neither aware of nor a party to any alleged family arrangement concerning Hikal shares, as suggested by the Hiremaths.
The Co. additionally mentions a letter from late N. Vagul, who served as the Chairman of ICICI Bank from 1996 to 2009 and was supposedly present during the discussions on the 1994 family agreement. The letter dated June 16, 2023, denies such an arrangement.
Additionally, the company has mentioned that it will also initiate legal action against the Hiremath family.
