Ban trading in firms referred to NCLT, says Sajjan Jindal

JSW Steel Chairman Sajjan Jindal today said trading in shares of the listed companies referred to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) should be suspended to avoid market speculations.

"Listed company shares in the event of reference to #NCLT should be suspended as per global practice to avoid speculation in the market," Jindal said in a tweet.

Jindal further tweeted that "suspension of shares helps in cleaner takeovers and doesn't make the deal expensive for the prospective investor @FinMinIndia #NCLT."

Investor must have flexibility for automatic de-listing of the company as the equity value is not there in most of NCLT cases, he said. His comments has come at a time when insolvency proceedings are going on against Bhushan Steel, Essar Steel and Electrosteel Steels after main lender SBI referred them to the NCLT for recovery under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

While Bhushan Steel is in default of Rs 44,478 crore to banks, Essar Steel owes Rs 37,284 crore and Electrosteel Steels Rs 10,273.6 crore.

Earlier media reports had suggested that JSW Steel was keen on buying Bhushan Steel, Monnet Ispat and even Essar Steel.