Who bought NDTV; all you want to know about SpiceJet chief Ajay Singh

Owner and co-founder of SpiceJet Ajay Singh has bought a majority stake in news channel NDTV. (Source: IE image)

NDTV channel is set to change hands even as its founders Prannoy Roy, Radhika Roy and promoter firm RRPR Holding Pvt Ltd are facing a CBI probe for allegedly concealing a share transaction. According to a report by The Indian Express, the owner and co-founder of SpiceJet Ajay Singh has bought a majority stake in news channel NDTV. The deal will give control of the company to Singh along with editorial rights. After this deal, Ajay Singh will have around 40 per cent stake in the company while Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy will hold around 20 per cent. As per the data available with BSE, the public shareholding in the company is nearly 39 per cent. But who really is Ajay Singh. Well, for one, he also controls budget carrier SpiceJet. Here are 5 interesting facts about Ajay Singh you must know about:

1. A first generation entrepreneur, Ajay Singh took charge of SpiceJet in 2004. He suffered a major setback in 2010 and from him media baron and DMK leader Kalanidhi Maran through the Sun Group took over a majority stake in the company, transferring management and ownership rights too.

2. However, Ajay Singh came back into the picture in 2015 when the company was plagued by financial losses. Last year, he bought Maran’s majority shares.

3. In order to revive the company, SpiceJet’s board appointed Singh and his wife Shiwani Singh as directors of the company. Singh also took over as chairman and managing director.

4. Interestingly, he is also the man behind the slogan “Abki Baar Modi Sarkar’ which was used by the Bharatiya Janata Party in its 2014 Lok Sabha election campaign. Singh later said he never expected it to find so much resonance with the nation.

5. He was also a part of BJP’s core campaign team and has also served as an OSD (officer on special duty) in the NDA government. He was OSD for the Information and Broadcasting, and Telecom and IT ministries. He had also helped in launching DD Sports.

According to the data available with BSE, the promoter holding in NDTV as of June 2017 stood at 61.45 per cent. Public shareholding in the company stands at 38.55 per cent. The Indian Express reported while quoting a source that Ajay Singh will also pick up NDTV’s debt of over Rs 400 crore and the total deal is valued at around Rs 600 crore.