Sibal's stake in Tehelka: Whom do we believe – minister or data?

The Tehelka sex scandal case involving its iconic editor Tarun Tejpal has brought into limelight the ownership structure of the magazine. With media reports publishing the shareholding pattern of the company in detail, the focus has fallen on a 0.04 percent stake owned by senior Congress leader and Union Law Minister Kapil Sibal. A report in the Business Standard yesterday citing data from the ministry of corporate affairs said Tehelka’s publisher was Anant Media Pvt Ltd. As much as 65.75 percent stake of Anant Media is owned by Royal Building and Infrastructure Company, which is a subsidiary of KDS Corporation. Trinamool Congress MP KD Singh owns KDS Corporation. [caption id=“attachment_1246243” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Kapil Sibal and Tarun Tejpal - is there a financial connection? PTI[/caption] Other shareholders of Anant Media are Tarun Tejpal (19.25 percent), Weldon Polymers (5.87 percent), Priyanka Gill (2.14 percnet), Rajasthan Patrika (1.96 percent), Neena Sarma (1.55 percent), Ram Jethmalani (0.08 percent), Kapil Sibal (0.04 percent) and Tejpal family and others (3.36 percent). Contrary to these reports, Sibal has told The Sunday Express that he doesn’t own any stake in Anant Media. But he had donated Rs 5 lakh to Tarun Tejpal when he was about to launch the magazine’s print edition in 2003. “When Tarun approached me for help in 2003, I was a lawyer at that time… I helped him. I gave a donation of Rs 5 lakh in 2003. I did not apply for shares, nor am I given any share allotment,” he has been quoted as saying in the report. According to him, the donation was his “commitment towards freedom of speech and freedom of press”. After its defence deals expose that seriously dented the BJP’s clean image, the NDA government had instituted tax raids on Tehelka. The portal was on the verge of collapse due to the witch hunt. Since then the ownership of the company has been a point of contention. The BJP, which has bore the brunt of many more exposes by Tehelka journalists, has accused the magazine of being pro-Congress. Considering the data is from the latest filings with the Registrar of Companies – 31 March 2012, Sibal’s statement today, rather than clarifying, is giving rise to more questions.