Chennai Petroleum Corporation appointed Ritesh Kumar Golchha as a Non-Executive Independent Director effective October 7, 2026. The appointment follows the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas directive, strengthening the board's governance framework.

Appointment details

The company informed the BSE and NSE under Regulation 30 of the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015. The appointment is pursuant to MoPNG letter No. CA-31033/1/2026-PNG (55708). CPCL confirmed that Golchha is not debarred from holding the office of director by any SEBI order or other authority. He is also not related to any other director of the company.

Professional profile

Golchha is a Chartered Accountant and Fellow Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). He holds a Bachelor's degree in Commerce. His professional background includes:

• Approximately 20 years of experience in financial consultancy, audit, and assurance.
• Expertise in project finance, taxation, and corporate compliance.
• Current role as Partner at M/s Premchand and Company, providing advisory services.
• Extensive experience in statutory audits, direct taxation, and financial planning.
• Advisory on government subsidies and fiscal incentives.

Governance compliance

The disclosure confirms that the appointment meets regulatory requirements for independent directors. The company secretary, Lalit Kumar Mohanty, signed the intimation digitally on October 7, 2026. No financial impact or operational changes were disclosed alongside this governance update.

Chennai Petroleum Corporation shareholders approved a final equity dividend of ₹54 per share for FY26 at its 60th annual general meeting held on August 26, 2026. The company also declared a preference dividend of 6.65%, amounting to ₹15.94 crore, on outstanding preference shares up to their redemption date in September 2025.

All eight ordinary resolutions placed before the meeting were passed with the requisite majority. The promoter group, holding 100,198,100 shares, voted unanimously in favor of every agenda item, including the adoption of audited financial statements and the ratification of the cost auditor’s remuneration for FY27.

Voting Participation and Results

The total voting turnout stood at approximately 81.35% of outstanding shares across the resolutions. Public institutional investors participated actively, with voting percentages ranging between 81.20% and 81.58% depending on the specific resolution. Non-institutional public shareholders showed lower participation rates, generally below 1% of their holdings, though those who voted largely supported the management proposals.

The scrutinizer, Chitra Lalitha & Associates, reported no invalid votes across any category for all resolutions. The voting process included remote e-voting from August 22 to August 25, 2026, followed by e-voting during the physical meeting.

Key Resolutions Passed

Board Composition Changes

Shareholders approved the re-appointment of two directors retiring by rotation: Mr. Inderjeet and Mr. Rohit Kumar Agrawala. Both resolutions received strong support from the promoter group but saw higher opposition from public institutional investors compared to other agenda items. Approximately 15.8% of votes cast against Mr. Inderjeet’s re-appointment came from this segment.

The meeting also facilitated new appointments to strengthen technical and nominee representation on the board. Mr. S.G. Venkatesh was appointed as a Technical Director, while Mr. V.C. Asokan was appointed as a Nominee Director. Both appointments secured over 85% approval from the total votes polled.

What the Numbers Show

The divergence in voting patterns highlights distinct shareholder priorities. While financial resolutions such as dividend declarations and auditor remuneration enjoyed near-unanimous support (above 99%), director appointments faced measurable dissent from public institutional investors. This suggests that while institutional holders align with management on financial stewardship, they exercise more selective oversight on individual board composition changes.