NSE imposes Rs 5.36 lakh penalty on NDTV for delay in appointing board director

NEW DELHI: News broadcaster New Delhi Television Ltd (NDTV) on Saturday said the NSE has imposed a penalty of Rs 5.36 lakh on the firm for delay in appointing the sixth director on the board.

The BSE has already imposed a penalty of Rs 5.36 lakh on the company for the same reason.

"The National Stock Exchange of India Ltd (NSE) vide letter/email dated August 21, 2020, has imposed a penalty on the company of Rs 5,36,900 inclusive of GST for the delay in this matter," NDTV said in a regulatory filing.

It said that on March 30 and June 29, it had written to Sebi, explaining its difficulty in finalising a candidate for the appointment of the sixth director on account of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The company has not received any response to, or acknowledgement of, these letters. The company had also submitted its explanations of the alleged non-compliance to NSE and BSE vide response dated July 31, 2020 and August 12, 2020, respectively," NDTV added.

It said that on August 2, it appointed Darius Taraporvala as the sixth director on the company's board, subject to the approval by the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting.

"Since the alleged non-compliance was solely on account of COVID-19 pandemic, the company shall file an application within 15 days to seek waiver of the penalty imposed by NSE in accordance with the carve-out policy, which allows for waiver of fines," the filing added.