Baba votes against nephew, but Sameer secures Hikal chair

MUMBAI: Baba Kalyani voted against his own nephew and lost. Sameer Hiremath, 52, secured the chairmanship of Hikal despite opposition from Bharat Forge's chairman and MD, with public shareholders tipping the balance.The resolution passed narrowly. Of the votes cast, nearly 52% backed Sameer's appointment as CMD, against 48% who opposed. Public shareholders decided the outcome: the Hiremath family delivered 44% of the votes in favour, with public shareholders adding roughly 8%. The Kalyani family accounted for 43% of the votes against, with public shareholders contributing about 5% on that side.With his elevation, Sameer will become the sole Hiremath representative on Hikal's board. His father, Jai Hiremath, the outgoing chairman, and his mother, Sugandha Hiremath, a non-executive director, both will step down on Oct 1.The voting pattern has upset the apple cart for a dispute meant to be cooling, not heating up. A former Supreme Court judge has been mediating the billion-dollar feud between the Hiremaths and Kalyanis over shared assets, including their Hikal shareholdings and parties under mediation typically avoid moves that strain an already fraught relationship further.The Kalyani camp also voted against the adoption of Hikal's FY26 financial statements, Sarangan Suresh's reappointment as executive director and auditors' remuneration. The only resolution it supported was the FY26 dividend.People familiar with the matter said the vote against the FY26 accounts was a surprise.Hikal's board including Amit Kalyani, Baba Kalyani's son and a non-executive director had already approved those accounts. Voting them down at the shareholder level was, in the words of those tracking the dispute, unusual.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.