A Delhi Court has removed an injunction on the exit of Godfrey Phillips from retail business 24Seven. The court has also asked Samir Modi, who is on the board of Godfrey Phillips, to face the procedure required to get appointed on the board.
Delhi's Saket court passed an order in the case today
A Delhi Court has removed an injunction on the exit of Godfrey Phillips from retail business 24Seven. The court has also asked Samir Modi, who is on the board of Godfrey Phillips, to face the procedure required to get appointed on the board.
For the unversed, the company announced exit from retail business 24Seven in April 2024. However, a Delhi Court restrained the company from going ahead with the move in June and granted protection to Samir Modi's position in the board. This interim protection has now been removed and his appointment will have to go to nomination and remuneration committee of the board.
Bina Modi, the Managing Director of Godfrey Phillips, has to recommend his appointment to the board as the 2014 KK Modi trust deed bounds her, the court said in its order. KK Modi family holds 47 per cent stake in Godfrey Phillips while 25 per cent stake is held by another foreign entity.
Bina Modi is locked in a family dispute with her two sons Lalit Modi and Samir Modi. At the centre of the dispute is a 2014 trust deed put in place by late KK Modi which divided the empire between his wife Bina and children Charu, Lalit and Samir.
Post his demise in 2019, Lalit Modi asked for the trust to be dissolved and the money to be distributed amongst all the heirs equally. However, Bina, Samir and Charu disagreed with the proposal. Since then, the family is locked in several legal cases which are pending in various Indian courts.
The latest development comes following a flare up in tensions in June when Samir accused his mother of plotting an attack on him to prevent from joining a board meeting. Godfrey Phillips has denied the allegations and some directors have filed a defamation case against him in Saket court.