Chanda Kochhar on board of ICICI Securities

Mumbai: Shareholders of ICICI Securities on Thursday voted in favour of having ICICI Bank’s beleaguered Chanda Kochhar on the board.

The embattled Kochhar is facing conflict of interest for clearing loans to Videocon Group, which subsequently invested in Nupower Renewables, a firm owned by Kochhar’s husband Deepak Kochhar. Multiple agencies Sebi, CBI and the I-T department are probing charges of nepotism and deficient corporate misgovernance.
The private lender earlier surprised many by proposing the Kochhar’s name for the board position.

ICICI Bank holds a majority 80 per cent stake in ICICI Securities. According to an NSE filing, 366 members cast votes. While 259 voted in favour of Kochhar, 83 voted against and 24 abstained.

“Wondering if decision to send Kochhar on leave was an eye-wash,” media quoted Shriram Subramanian of InGovern, a proxy advisory and corporate governance firm, as saying.