Religare Enterprises on Thursday said its executive chairperson Rashmi Saluja has ceased to be a director on its board as she did not get approval from shareholders for her re-appointment.

The exit of Saluja comes amid Burmans’ open offer bid to acquire an additional 26 per cent stake in the company.

She ceases to be non independent director with effect from February 7.

“This is to inform you that the company’s 40th Annual General Meeting (AGM) was held on February 7, 2025. One of the agenda items (Item No 2) as per the AGM notice approved by the Board of Directors of the company was with respect to the reappointment of Rashmi Saluja, the executive chairperson of the company and the only non-independent director on the board of REL,” it said.

According to the report of the Scrutinizer, the number of votes cast against the resolution was 97 per cent, it said.

Religare is a non-banking finance company and is, therefore, governed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) regulations besides the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) as it is a listed entity, it said.

In place of Saluja, the board has appointed Praveen Kumar Tripathi, non-executive independent director, as the chairperson of the company until June 30, 2025.

According to the resolution, the directors of the company will be appointed as the chairperson on a rotational basis to hold office for a calendar quarter and the first chairperson will be Praveen Kumar Tripathi and will hold office until June 30, 2025, Religare said in a separate filing.

Burmans’ open offer to acquire an additional 26 per cent stake in Religare commenced on January 27 following the regulatory approvals. However, the Supreme Court last week extended it to February 12 while hearing a competing offer made by a US-based investor.