(G.N.S) Dt. 31
New Delhi
The NDTV board has approved the appointments of Aman Kumar Singh (IRS C&CE: 1995), former PS to CM of Chhattisgarh & Group Head-Corporate Brand Custodian for the Adani Group, as a non-executive Additional Director and Sunil Kumar (IAS: 1979: CG), former chief secretary Chhattisgarh, as an Additional Director in the capacity of non-executive, Independent Director. These developments took place after Adani group on December 30. 2022 gained full control of NDTV by acquiring most of the stake of founders, Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy, at a premium of almost 17 per cent over the rate it paid to minority shareholders of the firm. The Adani Group now holds 64.71 per cent of NDTV.
The Adani group used RRPR Holdings Pvt Ltd to buy 27.26 per cent shares from Roys at Rs 342.65 per share. The price paid to Roys, which translates into Rs 602 crore, is almost a 17 per cent premium to Rs 294 a share Adani Group offered in an open offer to minority shareholders after taking control of RRPR Holdings.
Roys along with four other directors have resigned following the change of ownership. The other directors who have resigned are Darius Taraporvala and independent directors Kaushik Dutta, Indrani Roy and John Martin O’Loan. Prannoy and Radhika were the Executive Co-Chairpersons of NDTV.
It may be underlined that the Adani Group in November 2022 took Aman Singh on board as the Corporate Brand Custodian and Corporate Affairs of the flagship Group. Singh, a former IRS officer, was the most powerful bureaucrat in the then Dr Raman Singh government in Chhattisgarh. He was Principal Secretary to the CM and has been an expert in finance and planning whereas Sunil Kumar headed the Chhatisgarh Administration as Chief Secretary of the State.
