Sun TV has denied any involvement in the 2G scam and said the allegations were being levelled to harm the reputation of the company and its promoters.
“There has been a steep fall in the prices of the company’s shares possibly triggered by baseless allegations and rumours linking the company with certain happenings relating to the 2G scam.
“We wish to inform that Sun TV Network and Kalanithi Maran do not have any relationship whatsoever to any of these happenings,” Sun TV said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.
The company shares tumbled by 27.9 per cent yesterday after reports said that the Maran family-owned Sun TV Network was a beneficiary of pay-offs by an overseas telecom firm. The CBI has also started a “preliminary investigation” against Dayanidhi Maran.
The stock suffered a loss of 31.08 per cent during intra-day trade in the previous session, hitting a 52-week low of Rs 260.10. However, it bounced back today surging by 13.85 per cent in the morning trade on the bourses.
As per the lawsuit, after Aircel was taken over by Malaysia’s Maxis Communications, Sun TV received substantial investment from Maxis Group (Aircel) which took 20 per cent equity in DTH services firm Sun Direct TV.
Meanwhile, Mr Maran has said he did not favour any company in granting UASL licences while serving as the telecom minister during the period 2004-07, even as the political parties BJP and AIADMK called for his resignation on the issue.
Sun TV Network said the allegations made against it “seem to be done with intent to damage and malign the reputation of the company and its promoters’’.
“We categorically deny the allegation of our usage of 323 lines of BSNL, said to have been routed through the residence of Dayanidhi Maran,” it addded.
The company clarified that Mr Dayanidhi Maran does not own any shares either in Sun TV Network or in Sun Direct.
It said Sun TV neither has any holding in Sun Direct nor does it have any relationship with Maxis (which has a 20 per cent stake in Sun Direct). Sun TV only provides channels to Sun Direct’s DTH (direct to home) platform.
“We also wish to state that Sun TV Network does not have shareholding in Sun Direct TV or vice versa,” it added.