MUMBAI: A few days after making a stellar debut on the stock market, Mankind Pharma came under the scanner of the Income Tax department. Taxmen conducted raids on the premises of Delhi-based Mankind Pharma over allegations of tax evasion. The officials carried out search operations in subsidiaries and plants of the company. The searches by the department will have no impact on its operations said the company adding that it is fully cooperating with the officials.
“The officials of the company and its subsidiaries are cooperating with the officials of the Income Tax Department and are responding to the queries raised by them. This has had no impact on our operational performance,” said the company in a filing to the BSE. The search operations are expected to continue for a few more days.
Reacting to the news, shares of the company plunged 5.5% in Thursday’s trade to hit a low of Rs 1,306 on the BSE but later made some recovery and closed marginally down at 1379.65 apiece. Mankind Pharma, the fourth-largest Indian pharmaceutical company in terms of domestic sales and the third-largest in terms of sales volume, made its debut on the stock exchanges on Tuesday.
On the first day of trading, shares of the company closed with a gain of around 32%, making it one of the most successful listings of this year. The Rs 4,326 crore IPO of Mankind Pharma, which was the largest so far this year, received a strong response, as the issue was subscribed 15.32 times.
Incorporated in 1991, Mankind Pharma is engaged in developing, manufacturing and marketing a diverse range of pharmaceutical formulations across various acute and chronic therapeutic areas, as well as several consumer healthcare products.