MUMBAI: Leading
proxy voting advisory firm
Institutional Investor Advisory Services (
Iias
) has recommended to vote against the
re-election
of
Gautam Singhania
(59) to the board of
Raymond
ahead of the company's
annual shareholder meet
on June 27.
Singhania, who has been on the board of Raymond since 1990 and who is in the midst of
divorce proceedings
, has been accused of domestic violence as well as of using company funds for personal benefits by his estranged spouse Nawaz Modi.
According to Iias, the board has not provided clarity whether an independent investigation has been undertaken into these accusations and if so, what were the conclusions of this evaluation. "It is now for the shareholders to shield the company from this intra-promoter dispute. Hence, we do not support Singhania's reappointment to the board," it said.
Raymond offered no comment on the Iias report.
Reappointment of Singhania
as a director falls under ordinary resolution and according to rules, an ordinary resolution needs 50% of the votes to be cast in its favour.
Iias has also criticised Singhania's proposed
remuneration
structure from July 2024 to June 2027 as it exceeds regulatory thresholds. In FY24, Singhania's remuneration was about Rs 20 crore and the CMD's FY25 remuneration is estimated to be around Rs 23 crore. "The proposed remuneration structure is open-ended with limited contours," said Iias, "allowing
Singhania
to get remuneration in excess of 5% of the company's profits - which could be Rs 35 crore". It further said Singhania's proposed remuneration is also high compared to peers.
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