The Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) on Wednesday rejected a plea made by Dish TV against an order of the Securities and Exchange Board of India on Monday even as it directed the Jawahar Goel-led company to file its replies by March 20.

“We direct the appellant to file their reply by March 20, the whole-time member of Sebi to then pass appropriate orders in the matter, accordingly the matter has been disposed of,” the bench said.

In its March 7 order, Sebi asked Dish to disclose within 24 hours the results of its annual general meeting (AGM) held on December 30, 2021.

The regulator also criticised its board. “There is no material on record to suggest that the board of directors have discharged their duties as envisaged under the LODR (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, including setting a culture of ensuring high standards of corporate governance and disclosures; acting in the best interest of the listed entity and the shareholders,’’ the SAT said.

Dish TV had filed an appeal at the tribunal seeking a stay on the remarks made by Sebi against the company’s board, its independent directors, its compliance officer and the scrutiniser.

The counsel for the company said that Sebi’s observations would affect cases that are pending in other forums such as the National Company Law Tribunal and the high court.

The counsel had also contested the fine of Rs 10,000 imposed by the stock exchanges on the company for the non-disclosure of the AGM results.

The appellate tribunal on Wednesday did not grant any stay on Sebi’s remarks. It also did not accept Dish TV's plea to stay the penalty imposed by the BSE and NSE and asked the company to request the bourses for a waiver.

What next

• Dish must file reply by March 20

• Stay was sought so that NCLT and high court are not influenced by Sebi’s remarks