HC lifts stay on Sun Pharma's $3.2 billion Ranbaxy takeover

The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Saturday lifted a temporary stay it imposed on generic drugmaker Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd's $3.2 billion takeover of Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd, a lawyer involved in the case said, paving the way for both companies to complete the deal.

The court last month ordered an ‘interim status quo’ on the deal, pending a decision on a petition for a probe into alleged insider trading.

The petition was filed in late April by two individuals who requested that the court ask the market regulator SEBI and the two main stock exchanges to halt the deal and order a probe.

"The court has vacated the stay order on the deal," Vivek Reddy, lawyer for the petitioners, told Reuters.

Ranbaxy shares jumped 24 per cent and trading volume tripled in three sessions ahead of the companies' announcement on April 7 that Sun Pharma would buy the loss-making company from Japan's Daiichi Sankyo Ltd.

Sun Pharma declined to comment when contacted by Reuters, while Ranbaxy spokesmen did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment.