Finolex Cables Appoints Ratnakar Barve As Chairperson

Finolex Cables Ltd. appointed Ratnakar Barve as the chairperson of the firm after his predecessor Nikhil Naik stepped down from the post, according to a regulatory filing by the firm.

The development comes almost a week after the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal gave its nod to the outcome of the annual general meeting of FCL, where shareholders voted against the reappointment of former Executive Chairperson Deepak Chhabria on the board.

"This is to inform you that at the board meeting held on September 4, 2024, Nikhil Naik stepped down as chairman of the board, and the board appointed Ratnakar Barve as chairman in his place," Finolex Cables said.

Barve was serving as executive director-operations of the cable and appliances maker. Barve joined Finolex in 2009.

Chhabria was removed from the post of chairperson on Oct. 23 last year due to the resolution for his reappointment as a whole-time director designated as executive chairperson for five years not getting the required amount of support from shareholders in the annual general meeting held on Sept. 29, 2023.

Due to subsequent decisions from the Supreme Court and the NCLAT also, Chhabria was no longer director designated as executive chairperson of the company, with effect from Oct. 16, 2023, FCL had informed bourses on Oct 19, 2023.

Last week, the NCLAT also declined to interfere in the FCL AGM of Sept. 29, 2023, and said the consolidated scrutiniser's report reflects that 72.34% of votes were against resolution Number 4, which was for the reappointment of Chhabria.

"The decision of the Annual General Meeting held on 29 Sept. 2023 on Resolution No. 4, which took place during the pendency of this Appeal is not interfered with," the bench comprising Chairperson Justice Ashok Bhushan and Member (Technical) Barun Mitra had said.

Besides, the NCLAT also declined to invalidate the extraordinary general meeting of Orbit Electricals in 2019, a holding company of Finolex Cables, in which the Articles of Association were amended.

The NCLAT has upheld the earlier order passed by the National Company Law Tribunal, which approved EGM, in which the rights of Chhabria were curtailed by amending AoA on May 3, 2019.

A long-drawn legal battle was fought between the Chhabaria cousins Deepak and Prakash in 2016 over the share of transfers and corporate governance.

For the financial year ending March 2024, revenue of Finolex Cables Ltd. was Rs 5,014.4 crore.

(With Inputs From PTI)