Description

Securities Appellate Tribunal issues interim order on appeal against SEBI's February 2026 order debarring three persons from securities markets for one year and imposing ₹10 lakh penalty each, in connection with alleged manipulation of Unison Metals Ltd share price via Telegram stock tips.

Summary

The Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT), Mumbai issued an interim order on April 28, 2026 in Misc. Application No. 282 of 2026 (in Appeal No. 86 of 2026), filed by three appellants — Tirth Uttamchand Mehta, Uttamchand Chandanlal Mehta, and Sharad Ramkrishana Gattani — seeking a stay on SEBI’s order dated February 05, 2026. SEBI’s Whole Time Member (WTM) had debarred the appellants from accessing the securities market for one year and imposed a penalty of ₹10 lakhs each in connection with alleged manipulation of the volume and price of shares of Unison Metals Limited through stock recommendation tips disseminated on Telegram channels in December 2021.

Key Points

  • SAT Misc. Application No. 282 of 2026 in Appeal No. 86 of 2026, heard by a three-member bench: Justice P.S. Dinesh Kumar (Presiding Officer), Ms. Meera Swarup (Technical Member), and Dr. Dheeraj Bhatnagar (Technical Member)
  • SEBI’s WTM order dated February 05, 2026 debarred 16 out of 17 noticees from the securities market for one year and imposed ₹10 lakh penalty each; Noticee No. 16 was exonerated
  • Appellants are Noticee Nos. 14, 15, and 17: Tirth Mehta (Managing Director of Unison Metals Ltd.), Uttamchand Chandanlal Mehta (his father, former Director and current Chairman of Mangalam Alloys Ltd.), and Sharad Gattani (Tirth Mehta’s father-in-law)
  • SEBI issued an ex parte interim order cum Show Cause Notice on July 31, 2024, alleging Noticee Nos. 1–10 profited from a scheme to manipulate Unison Metals’ volume and price
  • Nine noticees deposited ₹4.23 crores in an escrow account with lien marked in favour of SEBI pursuant to the interim order
  • Appellants are alleged to have aided and abetted a stock manipulation scheme via communications with Noticee No. 11 (Shailesh S Patel), who coordinated with Jalaj Agrawal (Noticee No. 12) and Arvind Shukla (Noticee No. 13), who disseminated stock recommendations on Telegram channels

Regulatory Changes

No new regulatory changes are introduced. This circular communicates an interim judicial order from SAT adjudicating an appeal against an existing SEBI enforcement action.

Compliance Requirements

  • NSE member firms and market participants should note the ongoing debarment of the named appellants pending SAT’s final decision on the appeal
  • Entities dealing with Tirth Uttamchand Mehta, Uttamchand Chandanlal Mehta, and Sharad Ramkrishana Gattani in securities market activities should be aware of the active regulatory proceedings
  • The escrow arrangements of ₹4.23 crores deposited by nine noticees remain in place

Important Dates

  • July 31, 2024: SEBI ex parte interim order cum Show Cause Notice issued
  • February 05, 2026: SEBI WTM final order passed — debarment for one year and ₹10 lakh penalty per appellant
  • April 21, 2026: SAT heard and reserved the misc. application for orders
  • April 28, 2026: SAT pronounced this interim order

Impact Assessment

The case highlights regulatory risk around social-media-based stock promotion schemes, particularly through Telegram channels. The debarment of the Managing Director of Unison Metals Ltd. and associated promoters may affect investor confidence in the scrip. The ₹4.23 crore escrow deposit by nine noticees reflects the scale of alleged illicit gains. The SAT interim order indicates the tribunal is actively examining the merits of the SEBI WTM order, and its final outcome will have enforcement precedent value for similar Telegram-based tip dissemination and pump-and-dump allegations. Mangalam Alloys Ltd., a related listed group company chaired by one of the appellants, may face secondary reputational scrutiny.

Impact Justification

High importance as it involves SAT adjudication of SEBI debarment order related to coordinated stock price manipulation via Telegram channels; medium impact as it concerns specific individuals and one scrip rather than systemic market-wide changes.