Behind UNI's battle with death: Shareholder and govt ‘apathy’, shrinking funds, insolvency suit By Tanishka Sodhi 12 Sep, 2022 https://www.newslaundry.com/2022/09/12/behind-unis-battle-with-death-shareholder-and-govt-apathy-shrinking-funds-insolvency-suit
Six decades ago, eight leading media outlets came together to counter PTI monopoly. But a slow rot is turning fatal.
UNI suffered a big blow when Prasar Bharati withdrew its subscription in October 2020. In April, UNI also lost the monthly subsidy of Rs 17 lakh from the National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language. In 2006, UNI got an offer that could have bailed it out of the financial mess it would find itself in soon enough: Essel group chief Subhash Chandra, via his investment vehicle Mediavest, bought a 51 percent stake in UNI for Rs 32 crore by securing the highest bid. But fearing that Chandra would take full control of UNI or use it to the unfair advantage of his Zee media empire, some of the shareholders, including ABP and the Hindu, filed a case with the Company Law Board. Chandra’s purchase was declared null and void. Newslaundry learnt that there have been offers to buy stakes in UNI but the shareholders have resisted them.
Several UNI staffers and members of the management Newslaundry spoke with said it would help a great deal if the shareholders themselves subscribed to the news agency’s services. The subscription rates range from Rs 10,000 to Rs 7 lakh per month, depending on the newspaper’s circulation.
“The shareholders don't want to put in any money nor do they want new investment. So what do they want? Most of them are not interested. They just want to have stakes in the company without any responsibility or accountability,” said another member of the management.