Man who found ₹18 lakh worth Reliance shares decides to claim them; promises to donate 50% of total value
The RIL shares bought 37 years ago are believed to be worth ₹18 lakh now without including dividends, Rattan Dhillon wrote in a social media post.
Imagine someone getting physical shares of a blue chip company like Reliance Industries (RIL), which their parents may have bought nearly four decades ago and are now worth a fortune.
This is exactly what happened to Chandigarh-based Rattan Dhillon, who stumbled upon a few old RIL share certificates while cleaning a cupboard at his home. The investment, he shared, was done 37 years ago.
He posted pictures of the physical share certificates issued in 1987. They are signed by Dhirubhai Ambani, founder of Reliance Industries and the late father of Mukesh D Ambani, the current chairman and managing director of RIL.
In his first post on March 11, Dhillon wrote that he found the shares at home and was not sure what to do with them, since he was clueless about the stock market. He has requested netizens who have expertise in stock trading to guide him and tell him whether he still owns those shares.
The post quickly went viral and was seen over 4.2 million times, evoking a reaction from Zerodha's official handle, who wrote under the post that the firm had sent him a direct message.
Unclaimed shares
Importantly, Dhillon also received a response from the Investor Education & Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA), a government body and the custodian of all unclaimed shares which were never switched to dematerialised (demat) format.
However, a day later, he wrote a follow-up post mentioning that the signature of Dhurubhai Ambani would perhaps “go to waste”. He expressed disappointment over the lengthy process which was a prelude to claiming those shares.
He said, “It seems Dhirubhai Ambani’s signatures will go to waste, as I’ve decided not to proceed with digitizing the shares. The process is just too lengthy—obtaining the legal heir certificate alone takes 6-8 months, and the IEPFA process reportedly takes 2-3 years.”
Finally, he had a change of heart after receiving thousands of messages from social media users, urging him to proceed with claiming the shares.
He pointed out that he had received thousands of messages along with the promise of support from IEPFA and KFin Technologies, which are willing to assist in every possible way. He said he would do his best to provide the necessary documents and work towards digitizing these shares.
He also mentioned that if he retrieves the 37-year-old investment in Reliance, he will donate half of the claimed amount to organisations supporting the needy, especially those facing medical challenges.
He expressed gratitude to IEPFA for motivating him and setting an example for other investors who have unclaimed shares.
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