Delhi HC allows Franklin Templeton MF to sell Zee Ent and Dish TV shares

Upholding the single bench ruling, in a plea filed by the Essel Group, the division bench of the Delhi High Court has paved the way for Franklin Templeton mutual fund(MF) to sell shares of Zee Entertainment and Dish TV to recover Rs 616 crore.

The shares in question were pledged to Franklin Templeton as a security cover for the Rs 425 crore worth debentures of Essel Infraprojects that the fund house had subscribed to. The transaction happened in May 2015 while the debentures had come up for maturity on May 22, 2020. However, the fund house didn’t receive the said money from the Essel Group, prompting it to invoke the pledge on shares.