Chairman's conviction has no implication on company: Uflex

"The above conviction is in his personal capacity. Therefore, there will not be any financial implication on the company," Uflex told the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in a regulatory filing after Chaturvedi was sentenced to four years in the case.

"Uflex is a board-run, professionally-managed company and its business and operations continue to be on strong footing and run as usual," said the company in the filing. A special court of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) at Ghaziabad, another town on the outskirts of New Delhi in Uttar Pradesh, had held Chaturvedi guilty Tuesday in a corruption case related to the allotment of land to him by the Noida Authority.

Neera Yadav, former chief secretary of the state, was chief executive of the authority from 1992-94 when the land was allotted to Chaturvedi. She, too, was sentenced to four years of rigorous imprisonment.

Special Court Judge A.K Singh also slapped fines of Rs.50,000 each on Chaturvedi and Yadav. Both of them were taken to Dasna Jail soon after the verdict was pronounced in a packed court room.

Uflex said since the land was allotted to Chaturvedi in his personal capacity there was no implication on it. "The said land do not relate to the company's use. The company understands Ashok Chaturvedi is taking appropriate legal steps in the matter," it said. But the stock markets were unrelenting with the shares of Uflex hitting the lower filter  of Rs.156 Wednesday. The scrip had closed at Rs.194.95 Tuesday and opened at Rs.161 the next day and plunged after moving up to the day's high at Rs.180.

Uflex has been promoted by Chaturvedi, a first-generation entrepreneur from Kanpur who is well known among his peer group for an innovative streak. His associates credit him with building Uflex from scratch during the past two-and-a-half decades.

He started his business with just few thousand rupees and is known to have pioneered several products in the flexible packaging market. He also took the firm beyond the Indian shores, not just for exports, but also to establish its product lines.

According to available information, Uflex has three manufacturing units in India and one each in Mexico, Dubai and Egypt. It produces a wide range of plastic films and packaging products, providing end-to-end solutions to clients in more than 100 countries.

At present, the company has annual revenues of more than Rs.30 billion ($646 million). It is a major player in the Rs.15,000 crore ($325 million) domestic flexible packaging industry, growing annually at 15-18 percent due to demand from consumer goods sector.