Moneycontrol News
Shares of Sun Pharmaceuticals plummeted over 8 percent as investors reacted to a fresh complaint by a whistleblower against the company.
The company lost a little over Rs 15,000 crore market capitalisation in the past two sessions.
According to Moneylife magazine, between 2014 and 2017, Aditya Medisales (AML) has had over Rs 5,800 crore of transactions with Suraksha Realty, controlled by Sun Pharma’s co-promoter, Sudhir Valia. This is as per a new 172-page complaint (with documents) sent by the whistleblower on Sun Pharma to the market regulator, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).
The company has been battling corporate governance issues. In December 2018, the first complaint by whistleblower alleged that Dilip Shanghvi, his brother-in-law Sudhir Valia were part of financial irregularities with Dharmesh Doshi. Doshi was allegedly a key figure in Ketan Parekh scam of 2001.
The company was also in the news recently for a drug recall.
Its US subsidiary started voluntarily recalling 13,918 cartons of Vecuronium Bromide Injection of 10 mg and 20 mg strengths from US market at hospital level, following the identification of "particulate matter identified as glass" in the product.
The Vecuronium Bromide for Injection has been found to contain particulate matter identified as glass," Sun Pharma said in a letter to the US Food and Drug Administration on January 8.
The company, in a filing to exchanges, has clarified some aspects with regards to the complaint. The said whistleblower documents and other confidential emails are being offered for inspection to institutional investors by one media house as per the report, which again we are not privy to.
In these circumstances, there is a great asymmetry in the information circulating between analysts, investors and media leading to intense speculation. The availability of information contained in the whistleblower documents to a set of selective investors does put other investors including retail investors in a disadvantageous position.
We are concerned that certain entities/individuals are adopting unfair trade practices prejudicial to the interest of shareholders and other stakeholders. It is evident from the fact that shareholders value has been drastically eroded within a short span of time due to unsubstantiated complaint/allegation against the company and mala fide campaign launched by certain media houses, it added.
At 09:30 hrs Sun Pharmaceutical Industries was quoting at Rs 384.75, down Rs 42.40, or 9.93 percent, on the BSE. It touched a 52-week low of Rs 375.40.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
