Latest news with #Balaji
Mint
an hour ago
- Automotive
- Mint
Tata Motors fends off investor skepticism on $4.4 billion Iveco acquisition
Tata Motors Ltd assuaged investor concerns over its acquisition of Italian truck and bus maker Iveco for $4.4 billion, reasoning that it would help generate more returns for shareholders when it starts trading as a standalone entity later this year. Less than 12 hours after Tata Motors announced its largest acquisition ever, its management fielded questions from analysts and investors over the rationale for the acquisition. 'It is a meaningful, large acquisition… There is an understanding between the two companies to build a business of scale and size,' chief financial officer P.B. Balaji said during the call. Achieving high growth in the commercial vehicle business isn't easy and India's largest commercial vehicle maker needs such acquisitions to deliver growth to shareholders, the management added. 'Market shares are highly stable in the commercial vehicle business. It is not a very disruptive business. Diversification of cash flows is important to maintain growth in the business,' Balaji explained. Tata Motors shares were up 0.28% at ₹ 670.30 each in early afternoon trade on NSE. After the deal was announced late Wednesday, investors noted the possibility of a boost in earnings. But they also raised concerns as previous similar acquisitions—such as that of South Korea-based Daewoo's commercial vehicle business for $102 million in 2004—did not result in meaningful gains in the international markets. Some investors also highlighted challenges post Tata Motors's acquisition of UK-based Jaguar Land Rover in 2008 for $2.3 billion, and Tata Steel Ltd's acquisition of Corus Plc., also based in the UK, for $13.1 billion in 2007. 'Given the group's challenging experience with Corus and JLR acquisitions, why do you think this is somewhere Tata Motors can create value?,' asked Sonal Gupta, head of research-equities, at HSBC Asset Management India. 'Tata Motors CV (commercial vehicles) has limited international presence. We haven't really been able to capitalize the tech from Tata Daewoo to grow internationally.' Balaji said Tata Motors's portfolio and business level were close to that of Iveco, an acronym for Industrial Vehicles Corp., and the newly formed entity post the acquisition would invest up to $1.7 billion each year. 'Opportunities like these do not come when you want. You move when such opportunities arise. There was a very small window to get this business,' the CFO told the investors and analysts in attendance. On the JLR and Daewoo acquisitions, Balaji said JLR was a premium-luxury player and Tata Motors was a mass player at the time of acquisition, resulting in some hiccups, while Daewoo was a small deal limited to a single market. 'We have had our learnings from the experience,' Balaji assured investors. During Thursday's call, analysts from Morgan Stanley, Kotak Institutional Equities, and Bank of America raised questions about the calculation of free cash flow expectations and potential earnings boost. Per the company's estimate, Tata Motors and Iveco would have a significant combined global presence, with sales of over 540,000 units and over $25 billion in revenue. Europe would account for half of the combined group's total sales, followed by 35% in India and the remaining 15% in the Americas. Tata Motors lined up $4.36 billion in funding from Morgan Stanley Bank NA, Morgan Stanley Senior Funding Inc., and MUFG Bank Ltd for the acquisition, the company said in a statement on Wednesday. The company will look for fundraising opportunities to repay the debt, of which 30-40% will be equity and 60-70% will be debt, it added. Tata Motors said the acquisition of Iveco will allow the company to enter geographies like Latin America, where it was not previously possible due to fund and network constraints. In a note on Wednesday, analysts at Nuvama Institutional Equities said the acquisition would lead to an earnings boost for Tata Motors, with earnings per share estimated to increase by 4%. 'However, the key downside risk for Iveco is possibility of a sales downcycle in Europe and US CV markets resulting in lower earnings in near-term,' they wrote. The commercial vehicle business is the second largest for Tata Motors, contributing 17% to its 2024-25 revenue. However, the business's overall sales volume declined 5%, although exports grew 3%. Since the first confirmation of advanced talks of a deal between Tata Motors and Iveco on 30 July, Tata Motors shares have fallen by 3% while the Nifty Auto shed 1%.
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Business Standard
a day ago
- Politics
- Business Standard
Cricket stadium needed to conduct trial involving Senthil Balaji: SC
The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the Tamil Nadu government for implicating more than 2000 persons in cash-for-jobs scam cases involving ex-minister V Senthil Balaji, and sought the details of all the accused and witnesses. Terming the trial in cases involving ex-minister as "rudderless ship", a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi said that had there not been judicial intervention, the "reluctant state" wanted to give a decent burial of cases involving ex-minister Senthil Balaji in the cash-for-job scam case. "With over 2000 accused and 500 witnesses it will be the most populated trial of India. A small courtroom of the trial court will not suffice and a cricket stadium will be needed to even mark the presence of the accused. Several Artificial Intelligence-generated accused will pop up to mark their presence," the bench told senior advocate Gopal Sankaranaryanan, appearing for Y Balaji, representing victims of the scam and opposing the decision for clubbing of the cases. On a prayer for appointment of a special public prosecutor, the bench told senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for the state, that when a powerful minister and affluent people are accused in a case, there is a perception that a lone public prosecutor will not be able to do justice. On Tuesday, the top court expressed displeasure over the Tamil Nadu government "attempting to delay" the trial in cases involving Balaji by implicating more than 2,000 people as accused in the alleged cash-for-jobs scam and described the attempt as a "complete fraud on the judicial system". Balaji resigned from the M K Stalin-led state Cabinet on April 27 after being pulled up by the top court. The apex court asked Balaji on April 23 to make a choice "between post and freedom" as it warned him that his bail would be cancelled if he did not step down as a minister. It took exception to the fact that Balaji was reinstated as a minister in the southern state, days after he obtained bail in a money-laundering case related to the alleged cash-for-jobs scam. On September 26, 2024, the top court granted bail to Balaji in a case probed by the Enforcement Directorate. With Balaji spending more than 15 months in jail, the top court had observed that there was no possibility that the trial would be concluded in the near future. Balaji (48) was sworn-in as a minister on September 29 last year, and assigned the same key portfolios of electricity, non-conventional energy development, prohibition and excise that he had held previously in the Stalin Cabinet.
Time of India
a day ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Cricket stadium will be needed to conduct trial involving former TN minister Senthil Balaji: SC
The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the Tamil Nadu government for implicating more than 2000 persons in cash-for-jobs scam cases involving ex-minister V Senthil Balaji , and sought the details of all the accused and witnesses. Terming the trial in cases involving ex-minister as "rudderless ship", a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi said that had there not been judicial intervention, the "reluctant state" wanted to give a decent burial of cases involving ex-minister Senthil Balaji in the cash-for-job scam case. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Please select course: Select a Course Category "With over 2000 accused and 500 witnesses it will be the most populated trial of India. A small courtroom of the trial court will not suffice and a cricket stadium will be needed to even mark the presence of the accused. Several Artificial Intelligence-generated accused will pop up to mark their presence," the bench told senior advocate Gopal Sankaranaryanan, appearing for Y Balaji, representing victims of the scam and opposing the decision for clubbing of the cases. On a prayer for appointment of a special public prosecutor , the bench told senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for the state, that when a powerful minister and affluent people are accused in a case, there is a perception that a lone public prosecutor will not be able to do justice. On Tuesday, the top court expressed displeasure over the Tamil Nadu government "attempting to delay" the trial in cases involving Balaji by implicating more than 2,000 people as accused in the alleged cash-for-jobs scam and described the attempt as a "complete fraud on the judicial system". Live Events Balaji resigned from the M K Stalin-led state Cabinet on April 27 after being pulled up by the top court. The apex court asked Balaji on April 23 to make a choice "between post and freedom" as it warned him that his bail would be cancelled if he did not step down as a minister. It took exception to the fact that Balaji was reinstated as a minister in the southern state, days after he obtained bail in a money-laundering case related to the alleged cash-for-jobs scam. On September 26, 2024, the top court granted bail to Balaji in a case probed by the Enforcement Directorate. With Balaji spending more than 15 months in jail, the top court had observed that there was no possibility that the trial would be concluded in the near future. Balaji (48) was sworn-in as a minister on September 29 last year, and assigned the same key portfolios of electricity, non-conventional energy development, prohibition and excise that he had held previously in the Stalin Cabinet. PTI
Mint
a day ago
- Politics
- Mint
Cricket stadium will be needed to conduct trial involving former TN minister Senthil Balaji: SC
New Delhi, Jul 30 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the Tamil Nadu government for implicating more than 2000 persons in cash-for-jobs scam cases involving ex-minister V Senthil Balaji, and sought the details of all the accused and witnesses. Terming the trial in cases involving ex-minister as "rudderless ship", a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi said that had there not been judicial intervention, the "reluctant state" wanted to give a decent burial of cases involving ex-minister Senthil Balaji in the cash-for-job scam case. "With over 2000 accused and 500 witnesses it will be the most populated trial of India. A small courtroom of the trial court will not suffice and a cricket stadium will be needed to even mark the presence of the accused. Several Artificial Intelligence-generated accused will pop up to mark their presence," the bench told senior advocate Gopal Sankaranaryanan, appearing for Y Balaji, representing victims of the scam and opposing the decision for clubbing of the cases. On a prayer for appointment of a special public prosecutor, the bench told senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for the state, that when a powerful minister and affluent people are accused in a case, there is a perception that a lone public prosecutor will not be able to do justice. On Tuesday, the top court expressed displeasure over the Tamil Nadu government "attempting to delay" the trial in cases involving Balaji by implicating more than 2,000 people as accused in the alleged cash-for-jobs scam and described the attempt as a "complete fraud on the judicial system". Balaji resigned from the M K Stalin-led state Cabinet on April 27 after being pulled up by the top court. The apex court asked Balaji on April 23 to make a choice "between post and freedom" as it warned him that his bail would be cancelled if he did not step down as a minister. It took exception to the fact that Balaji was reinstated as a minister in the southern state, days after he obtained bail in a money-laundering case related to the alleged cash-for-jobs scam. On September 26, 2024, the top court granted bail to Balaji in a case probed by the Enforcement Directorate. With Balaji spending more than 15 months in jail, the top court had observed that there was no possibility that the trial would be concluded in the near future. Balaji (48) was sworn-in as a minister on September 29 last year, and assigned the same key portfolios of electricity, non-conventional energy development, prohibition and excise that he had held previously in the Stalin Cabinet.
Indian Express
2 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Trial will never end in ‘lifetime of minister': Supreme Court blasts Stalin govt for naming 2,000 accused in Senthil Balaji's cash-for-jobs case
The Supreme Court Tuesday slammed the M K Stalin government in Tamil Nadu for allegedly trying to prolong the trial of former minister V Senthil Balaji in the cash-for-jobs case by implicating around 2,000 people as accused, calling it a complete 'fraud on the system'. 'Poor persons who were coerced by your minister or by his henchmen to pay something (Rs) 5,000, 10,000, 1 lakh, 2 lakh, you are more keen to prosecute them so that in the entire lifetime of the minister, (the) trial never comes to an end! That is your modus operandi! Completely fraud on the system… By implicating these so-called bribe givers, somebody trying to get his son employed, gave Rs 1 lakh, 2 lakh, you are making everyone an accused… 2,000 accused in 2 cases!' remarked Justice Surya Kant, presiding over a two-judge bench. The bench, also comprising Justice Joymala Bagchi, was hearing an appeal by one Y Balaji, on behalf of the victims of the alleged scam. The plea challenged the March 28, 2025, Madras High Court order rejecting petitions against the orders of the trial court directing clubbing of four supplementary chargesheets filed in connection with the fraudulent recruitment in the Chennai Metropolitan Transport Corporation. The high court, while dismissing petitions by Anti Corruption Movement against the clubbing of chargesheets, had noted that the offences formed part of the same transaction and could not be treated distinctly and that all chargesheets involved the same set of witnesses and documents. Noting that the number of accused stood at 2,202, the high court said holding separate trials would only delay the proceedings. The Supreme Court, while referring to the four chargesheets, sought to know '…who are the alleged middlemen to whom money was paid, who are the officers who acted on the minister's behest, and who were on the board of appointments or the officials who carried out these appointments?' Senior advocate A M Singhvi, who appeared for the state, said the information was in another plea which was not listed before the court Tuesday. The bench directed that those matters also be listed before it for hearing again Wednesday. Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, who appeared for the petitioner, pointed out that the Supreme Court had in previous orders criticised the alleged attempts by the state to save the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader. Senior advocate Amit Anand Tiwari, who also appeared for the state, said the petitioner had not approached the high court and was attempting 'forum shopping'. The allegations against Balaji concern the 2011-2016 period when he was transport minister in the then All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government. In 2014-15, Balaji allegedly abused his official capacity and entered into a criminal conspiracy with the then managing directors of all state transport undertakings (STU) and other officers of transport corporations to obtain illegal gratification from candidates to recruit them as drivers, conductors, junior tradesmen, junior assistants, junior engineers, and assistant engineers. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) registered a money laundering case against him and arrested him in June 2023, when he was minister for electricity, prohibition and excise, in the incumbent DMK government. The Supreme Court granted bail to him on September 26, 2024, noting that the trial against him was unlikely to begin soon and that he had already spent over a year in custody. Just three days later, on September 29, 2024, he was reinstated as a Cabinet minister in the DMK government headed by Stalin. ED subsequently approached the Supreme Court seeking cancellation of his bail on the ground of influencing witnesses. Hearing the matter on April 23, the court took stern exception to his reinstatement, saying that one of the grounds on which he had sought bail was that he was no longer a minister and therefore, not in a position to influence the trial. On April 23, the top court asked Balaji to decide whether he wanted to retain his Cabinet post or safeguard his bail in the ongoing case. He then decided to retain the bail and stepped down as minister.
