Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has imposed penalties totalling nearly ₹29 crore on Suzlon Energy and four former executives after finding that a series of intra-group transactions had created a misleading picture of the wind turbine maker’s financial health.
In a detailed order, the capital markets regulator fined Suzlon Energy ₹15.95 crore, while penalties of ₹5.75 crore and ₹5.45 crore were levied on former chairman Vinod R Tanti and Vice-chairman Girish R Tanti, respectively. Former executives Kirti J Vagadia and Amit Agarwal were fined ₹1.5 crore and ₹30 lakh. The regulator also set aside an earlier June 2025 adjudication order that had exonerated the company and its officials.
OMS transfer
The case relates to transactions undertaken between FY14 and FY21 involving Suzlon and several subsidiaries, including the transfer of its operations and maintenance services (OMS) business to Suzlon Global Services Ltd in 2014.
According to SEBI, the OMS business, which had a book value of ₹77.08 crore, was transferred for ₹2,000 crore, enabling Suzlon to recognise an exceptional gain of ₹1,922.92 crore. The regulator said the company subsequently booked another gain of ₹829.78 crore through an intra-group transfer of stake in the subsidiary.
SEBI held that a portion of the sale consideration was routed through circular transactions between the company and its subsidiaries to create the appearance of payment without actual movement of funds. The regulator said these transactions artificially inflated Suzlon’s net worth and reduced reported losses in its financial statements.
The order also examined transactions involving SE Forge Ltd and Suzlon Gujarat Wind Park Ltd, where loans and equity infusions were allegedly routed through layered intra-group entries and later returned to Suzlon entities.
Rejecting the earlier adjudicating officer’s reasoning that the transactions had received board approvals and were supported by valuation reports and disclosures, SEBI said the central issue was whether the arrangements presented a “true and fair” view of the company’s financial position to investors.
The regulator concluded that the company and its executives had violated provisions of the PFUTP regulations, listing norms, and securities laws by disseminating misleading financial information to the market.