Sun TV Network defends promoter Kalanithi, says all legal obligations met
New Delhi, Jun 20 (PTI) A day after reports emerged of former Union minister Dayanidhi Maran accusing his brother of "fraudulent practices" and "misgovernance", the elder sibling Kalanithi-run Sun TV on Friday said the division between the promoter family done 22 years back was in compliance with all legal obligations.
Defending its promoter Kalanithi, Sun TV Network in a regulatory filing said the agreements between the two brothers had been "duly vetted" by "intermediaries" concerned before the company's public issue.
According to reports, Dayanidhi has sent a legal notice to his brother and several others, accusing them of "fraudulent practices" and "misgovernance" in taking control of Sun TV after their father Murasoli Maran's death in 2003.
Dayanidhi, who is also a Lok Sabha member from the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), has sought to restore the company's shareholding structure to its pre-September 2003 status.
The board of Sun TV Network is led by Kalanithi as Executive Director and Chairperson. His daughter Kavya Kalanithi Maran is also on the south-based broadcaster board.
Kalanithi, as a promoter, owns 75 per cent shareholding in Sun TV Network.
On Friday, Sun TV Network, in its regulatory filing said, "The alleged matter dates back to 22 years when the company was a closely held private limited company."
Defending the promoter, it further stated, "Statements allegedly made in the articles are incorrect, misleading, speculating, defamatory and not supported by facts or law".
"We wish to inform that all acts have been done in accordance with legal obligations and the same had been duly vetted by concerned intermediaries before the public issue of the company," it said.
Moreover, Sun TV Network also said the media reports claiming a rift between the promoter Maran brothers "does not have any bearing on the business of the company or its day-to-day functioning".
Sun TV Network also clarified that it is a "family matter of the promoter" and is "purely personal in nature".
Besides Kalanithi, financial institutions, including mutual funds and insurance companies, own 10.46 per cent of the shareholding of Sun TV and 6.87 per cent by the foreign portfolio investors.
Chennai-based Sun TV Network is among India's leading media conglomerates, having 37 television channels in seven languages, with a reach of more than 140 million households in India.
Besides, it also owns Sun Direct, a DTH (direct-to-home) platform and operates 69 FM radio stations under the brand names -- Suryan FM, RED FM and Magic FM. It also operates three daily newspapers and six magazines.
In addition, Sun TV Network owns the Sunrisers Hyderabad franchise of the Indian Premier League and Sunrisers Eastern Cape of Cricket South Africa's T20 League.
For the 2024-25 financial year, the network's total consolidated income was ₹ 4,712.60 crore, down 1.55 per cent. Its profit after tax was down 11.53 per cent to ₹ 1,703.64 crore, against ₹ 1,925.80 crore a year earlier.
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