Annual Report • Oct 9, 2025
Annual Report
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ASHOKA INDIA EQUITY INVESTMENT TRUST PLC ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2025 17745 Ashoka India AR cover.qxp 08/10/2025 09:34 Page 1 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 About Us Company Status Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc (the “Company”) is an investment company, incorporated on 11 May 2018. Following its successful flotation on 6 July 2018, its shares are listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange. The Company is a member of the Association of Investment Companies (“AIC”). Investment Objective The investment objective of the Company is to achieve long-term capital appreciation, mainly through investments in securities listed in India and listed securities of companies with a significant presence in India. Details of the Company’s investment policy is set out on page 10. Investment Manager and Investment Adviser Acorn Asset Management Ltd (“Acorn”) is responsible for management of the Company’s assets and is the appointed Alternative Investment Fund Manager (“AIFM or Investment Manager”) for the purposes of the UK AIFM Regime. Acorn has appointed Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Pte. Ltd. (“Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners or the Investment Adviser”), a boutique investment advisory firm, to provide investment advisory services to it. Acorn is entirely owned by Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Pte. Ltd. Further details of these appointments are provided on pages 27 and 28. Capital Structure The Company’s capital is composed of ordinary shares and management shares. Details are given on page 28 and in note 12 to the financial statements. ISA Status The Company’s shares are eligible for Stocks and Shares ISAs. Retail Investors advised by IFAs The Company currently conducts its affairs so that its shares can be recommended by Independent Financial Advisers (“IFAs”) in the UK to ordinary retail investors in accordance with the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) rules in relation to non-mainstream investment products and intends to continue to do so. The shares are excluded from the FCA’s restrictions which apply to non-mainstream pooled investment products because they are shares in an investment trust. 17745 Ashoka India AR cover.qxp 08/10/2025 09:34 Page 2 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Contents 1 FINANCIAL INFORMATION AND PERFORMANCE SUMMARY 2 STRATEGIC REPORT CHAIRMAN’S STATEMENT 3 INVESTMENT MANAGER’S REPORT 6 TOP TEN HOLDINGS 9 INVESTMENT POLICY, RESULTS AND KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS 10 RISK AND RISK MANAGEMENT 13 ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND GOVERNANCE POLICY 16 STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT – SECTION 172 REPORT 21 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 24 INVESTMENT TEAM 26 GOVERNANCE DIRECTORS’ REPORT 27 CORPORATE GOVERNANCE 33 DIRECTORS’ REMUNERATION REPORT 39 AUDIT COMMITTEE REPORT 43 STATEMENT OF DIRECTORS’ RESPONSIBILITIES 46 INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF ASHOKA INDIA EQUITY INVESTMENT TRUST PLC 47 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME 57 STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION 58 STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY 59 STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS 60 NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 61 OTHER INFORMATION ALTERNATIVE PERFORMANCE MEASURES 79 GLOSSARY 80 DIRECTORS, INVESTMENT MANAGER AND ADVISERS 82 NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 83 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 1 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Financial Information and Performance Summary 2 Financial information As at 30 June 2025 As at 30 June 2024 Net asset value (“NAV”) per Ordinary Share (cum income) 278.9p 279.3p Ordinary Share price 281.5p 284.0p Ordinary Share price premium to NAV 1 0.9% 1.70% Net assets £476.2million £435.4million Performance summary For the For the Year ended Year ended 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 % 2,3 % 3 Share price total return per Ordinary Share 1 –0.9% 35.90% NAV total return per Ordinary Share 1 –0.2% 35.50% MSCI India Investable Market Index (‘IMI’) total return (sterling terms) 2,3 –6.6% 37.70% 1 These are Alternative Performance Measures. 2 Total returns in sterling for the year ended 30 June 2025 and 2024. 3 Source: Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Pte. Ltd. Alternative Performance Measures (“APMs”) The disclosures as indicated in the footnote above represent the Company’s APMs. Definitions of these APMs and other performance measures used by the Company, together with how these measures have been calculated, can be found on page 79. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 2 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Chairman’s Statement 3 Welcome to the seventh annual results of Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc for the year ended 30 June 2025. First, the very good news. Since launch in July 2018, the Company’s assets have grown from c.£46million to approximately £450 million thanks to a combination of outstanding performance and growth from share issuance. On behalf of the Board, I am pleased to confirm that, as a result, Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc was promoted to the FTSE250 Index on 23June 2025. This is a remarkable achievement and the Board is duly proud of the outstanding and consistent performance of both the Investment Manager and the Investment Adviser and heartily congratulates Prashant Khemka and Ayush Abhijeet, the Company’s lead investment managers. As announced on 5 August 2025, I am delighted to confirm that Hiren Dasani, an experienced, senior investor, has joined Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners as Chief Investment Officer of Emerging Markets and will act as co-portfolio manager of this Company alongside Prashant and Ayush with immediate effect. However, the less good news is for me to be disappointed to write this statement at a period when the geopolitical pressures across the world have not lessened since this time last year. My “heroic assumptions” for a more peaceful world were misplaced; Russia continues to bombard Ukraine in an unrelenting mission to subsume that sovereign nation back into the old Soviet Union and tensions in the Middle East have increased as Israel widens the scope of the conflict. To add to this, the possibility of disruption in global trade as a result of tariffs imposed by President Trump on US imports is a further unwanted distraction. As I have written many times before, these conditions are hardly conducive for investment managers to perform at their best but it does appear that, overall, markets are continuing to take the ceaseless negative newsflow in their stride and show resolute reluctance to go down. India is a case in point, positioned as it is as a long-term trading ally of Russia whilst, at the same time, pursuing the seemingly unstoppable aim of economic growth, both domestically and abroad. However, in the year under review, the Company’s benchmark index, the MSCI India IMI, (in sterling) fell by 6.6% showing that even such a fast-growing economy is not immune from market forces. Performance Last year I mentioned that your Board is only too well aware of how impressive performance has been since launch in 2018, both in relative and absolute terms, and spends a fair amount of time wondering about “bumps in the road ahead”. It’s fair to say that the volatility during the last year caused heads to be scratched but remarkably, given the conditions I have outlined, the investment team has again managed to outperform the benchmark index for the year to 30 June 2025, recording a small negative net asset value (NAV) return of 0.2% in sterling terms, an outperformance of 6.4%. It is also worth recording that over the five-year period to 30 June 2025, in sterling terms, the Company’s NAV increased by 167.8% against the index rise of 123.6%; since launch in 2018, the numbers are 184.6% versus 106.8%, a highly satisfactory result for our long-term shareholders. As is made clear in the Investment Manager’s Report that follows, India is currently exposed to potential US tariffs and affected by a degree of economic uncertainty worldwide. As the US is India’s largest export market, it is hoped that the first issue will soon be resolved and that both will have only a short-term impact. However, since the end of the Company’s 2025 financial year, both the NAV and share price have weakened a little; as at 6 October 2025, the latest practicable date before publication of this Report, the NAV was 270.5p and the share price 263.0p, a discount of 2.8%. Share Issuance As an investment destination for UK-based shareholders, India constitutes a very small percentage of the total, still being considered a single-country, emerging market. To an extent, this status may protect the Company from the worst of short-term trading volatility caused by extraneous events and it also suggests that, on occasional weakness, new investors are attracted to the Company by its impressive performance record and existing shareholders show willingness to increase exposure. As a result, the Company continued to respond to demand and issued new shares at a small premium to the prevailing net asset value. In total, 14,849,496 new shares were issued during the year under review, raising a total of £42.2 million. Since year end, issuance has continued and, as at the date of this Report, there were 171,491,893 shares in issue. STRATEGIC REPORT 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 3 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Chairman’s Statement (continued) 4 Revenue and Dividends The Company’s principal objective is to provide returns through long-term capital appreciation, with income being a secondary consideration. Therefore, shareholders should not expect that the Company will pay an annual dividend, under normal circumstances. Whilst the portfolio does generate a small amount of income, this is used to defray running costs. However, the Company has been generating revenue almost by default during the year under review as the portfolio’s investee companies distribute available and excess cash to their shareholders. As a result, this will be the firstyear that the Company pays a dividend in order to comply with rules governing investment trust status. Added to reserves retained in previous years, this dividend amounts to 0.5p per share and will be paid on 31 October 2025 to shareholders on the register as at 10 October 2025. At this early stage, it remains unclear whether this will now become an annual event. Redemption Facility The Company has a redemption facility through which shareholders are entitled to request the redemption of all or part of their holding of Ordinary Shares on an annual basis. The Redemption Point for the Ordinary Shares this year is 30September 2025. As announced on 4 September 2025, the total number of ordinary shares in respect of which valid redemption requests were received for this Redemption Point was 2,549,082. All of the Ordinary Shares will be redeemed by the Company. All shareholders who validly applied to have shares redeemed will receive a redemption price of 267.19 pence per share. It is expected that dispatch of payments in respect of the valid redemption requests will be made on or before 13 October 2025. Performance Fee Even considering the slightly negative number for the year under review, the Company’s investment performance has been outstanding since launch in 2018 and returns from investing in the Company, an actively-managed investment company specialising in Indian equities across the market cap spectrum, have been compelling. To remind shareholders of the Company’s fee arrangements, no annual management fee is paid; the Investment Manager, Acorn Asset Management Ltd, is remunerated solely by means of a performance fee based on the level of performance relative to the Company’s benchmark index, the MSCI India IMI, over discrete three-year periods. The first such period ended on 30 June 2021, the second on 30 June 2024 and we are now one third into the measurement period that runs from 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2027. It is for this latest period that a performance fee is being accrued to the Investment Manager and this currently amounts to £16.0million. Full details of the performance fee can be found on page 29 of this Annual Report. I remind shareholders that any performance fee is fully accrued in the daily NAV calculation. For the current year and beyond, a very modest amendment to the Investment Management Agreement has been made. This is purely a technical wording adjustment clarifying the performance fee payment between the Company and the Investment Manager which does not alter the essence of the arrangement and is not considered material. The Company’s portfolio is actively managed and seeks an excess return relative to its benchmark index (known as “alpha”). This investment style may lead to occasional greater volatility than the benchmark index but has produced outstanding returns for shareholders since inception. The Board remains fully supportive of this investment approach and remuneration structure. Operational Developments and Governance During the year, we completed the transition of Company Secretary and Administrator responsibilities to NSM Funds (UK) Limited, effective 1 January 2025, thus reuniting with experienced senior personnel who oversaw the launch of this Company in 2018. The Board has continued to engage with shareholders and undertook an externally-facilitated evaluation in 2025 to ensure we remain committed to maintaining high standards of governance, oversight and accountability. Annual General Meeting The Company will hold its Annual General Meeting on 10December 2025 at the offices of Stephenson Harwood LLP, 1Finsbury Circus, London EC2M 7SH starting at 11am. An on-line presentation will be given by the Investment Manager and the Board will be delighted to see all shareholders who are able to attend. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 4 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 5 Outlook More of the same only better I think is an appropriate way to describe the future for this Company. Long-term shareholders are only too well aware of the outstanding returns that have been produced and, as global news outlets constantly report and I bang on about at every opportunity, the economic growth prospects for the powerhouse of the Indian economy remain intact even after a relatively lacklustre year compared to recent times. The threats are well known: geopolitical tensions worsening rather than abating; tariff wars interrupting global trade affecting Indian exports; over-expansion exuberance in the domestic market; China regaining its poise – the list goes on. What I think has not changed, however, and is unlikely to, is the appetite within India to succeed, both domestically and on the global stage. This extends from Government initiatives through the already-affluent middle classes and on to the burgeoning new entrepreneurial class of business leaders who see the opportunities opening up in front of them and who have available to them a willing, very able and educated workforce. As mentioned before, the vast majority of this intelligent cohort speaks good English, the lingua franca of the global commercial world and an imperative as a tool to escape domestic boundaries. The investable opportunities presenting themselves to our investment management teams continue to grow as India’s economy develops and these new enterprises emerge. India’s structural growth story remains very much intact driven by favourable demographics, digital transformation and manufacturing reforms. To fully capitalise on these opportunities, the Company may now invest up to 12% of its gross assets (at the time of investment) in unquoted companies. Following detailed discussions with the Investment Manager, the Board has agreed to a final increase in this limit to 15% of gross assets (at the time of investment), subject to approval by shareholders at this year’s AGM. Your Board is wholly supportive of the Investment Manager’s proprietary method of approaching investment decisions, of adhering to best-practice corporate governance standards and of finding early access to tomorrow’s success stories and firmly believes that allowing the investment teams to have adequate flexibility is likely to yield the best return for shareholders over the longer term. My optimistic nature remains intact although it has taken a bit of a bruising as the geopolitical situation remains a tinderbox. To compensate, I still find it difficult to imagine a near-future world that doesn’t have India as a principal driver of economic growth. President Trump is an acquired taste, of that there is no doubt, but on certain levels it is difficult to argue against his position on the imbalance of global trade over several decades. Whether or not an agreed tariff system will correct this inequality is up for debate but the readiness of most countries to negotiate suggests that it might. Should I be foolish enough to hope that Trump can also pull off his declared intention of ending two wars? My (uneasy) prediction is that tensions in the Middle East will abate, but never go away completely, and that Putin will fight on. I really hope to open next year’s statement with an acknowledgement of how wrong I was on this second point. As ever, my sincere thanks for being a shareholder in the Company and, to end on a positive note, India remains an extremely attractive destination for investors and I think this is even more so over coming years, possibly decades. The Company has a talented team at the helm, and behind the scenes analysing potential investments, and is, in your Board’s view, positioned better than any to exploit investment opportunities as they arise. Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners have established deserved reputations in India for being high quality investors and Ifirmly believe this will translate into continued excellent, long-term returns for our shareholders. Andrew Watkins Chairman 8 October 2025 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 5 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Investment Manager’s Report 6 Performance Review During the year ended 30 June 2025, the Company’s total NAV return outperformed the benchmark index by 6.4% delivering –0.2%, compared to –6.6% for the MSCI India IMI (in sterling terms). Since 31 July 2018 (the date post IPO when the Company was fully invested), the Company has delivered 88.3% of net cumulative outperformance, with a 180.8% absolute return compared to the benchmark return of 92.5%, both in sterling terms. Strong stock selection especially in mid and small caps has been a tailwind. * Shareholders should note that the MSCI India IMI Index (sterling terms) does not deduct taxes, unlike active and passive funds, such as the Company. Key contributors & detractors for the year ended 30 June 2025 Portfolio Ending Portfolio Weight Total Return Contributors (%) (%) OneSource Specialty Pharma 4.1 +55.6 Bharti Airtel 4.0 +25.5 Cholamandalam Financial Holdings 1.7 +33.7 Portfolio Ending Portfolio Weight Total Return Detractors (%) (%) Varun Beverages 0.0 –27.2 Tata Consultancy Services 1.8 –17.9 Grindwell Norton 0.3 –43.0 * Source data: FactSet. Contributors OneSource Specialty Pharma Ltd., a specialty-focused Contract Development and Manufacturing Organisation (“CDMO”) with capabilities in biologics, complex injectables, and drug-device combinations, outperformed following a strong operating result for the period December 2024 – March 2025, which was also its first profitable quarter since listing. The turnaround was driven by a favourable product mix, operational efficiencies, and successful integration of acquired entities, leading to cross-selling opportunities and cost synergies. The management has outlined a US$100 million capex plan for the new fiscal year while maintaining stronger debt service ability and targeting to become debt-free over the next few years. These developments have also contributed to a rerating of the stock, reflecting investor confidence in the company’s growth trajectory. Bharti Airtel is the leading telecom company in India with presence across wireless, fixed broadband, enterprise and Direct-To-Home TV broadcast services. The company also operates wireless and mobile money operations in several African markets. The company is well-positioned to benefit from improving industry structure and pricing outlook within the Indian wireless market. Execution remains strong across all business lines, underpinned by a disciplined approach to capital allocation and a focus on sustainable returns. Following the recent industry-wide tariff hike, Bharti Airtel has consistently outperformed peers across key operating metrics, reflecting both its high-quality subscriber base and sustained operational excellence. Cholamandalam Financial Holdings is a holding company owned by the Murugappa Group, with a stake in two fast-growing and well-run businesses: (1) ~44% stake in Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company (“CIFC”) and (2) 60% stake in Chola MS General Insurance. CIFC primarily operates in vehicle finance, home equity, and affordable home loan categories, and its strength lies in its ability to underwrite and collect dues from customers in rural and semi-urban markets, where income streams are relatively less predictable. CIFC’s operating performance in recent quarters has been solid, and the company has also made progress in three new lending segments. Cholamandalam Fin. Holdings largely derives its value from CIFC, where the operating performance has been better than the previous year as utilisation rates seem to have bottomed out, and the management guided for an improving trajectory of asset quality. Additionally, the monetary easing by the central bank is expected to reduce the cost of funds and enhance the margin profile for a fixed-rate lender such as CIFC, which has been a key driver of the stock’s recent performance. Detractors Varun beverages Ltd (“VBL”) is one of the largest bottlers for the global brand PepsiCo, with which it has been associated since the 1990s. The company serves as PepsiCo’s exclusive bottling partner across most regions in India, accounting for over 90% of the brand’s volumes in the country. This scale and long-standing relationship position VBL as a critical strategic partner within 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 6 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 7 PepsiCo’s global franchise network. The company produces and distributes a wide range of carbonated soft drinks, non-carbonated drinks and packaged water, sold under the trademarks owned by PepsiCo. On the back of its strong execution capabilities, extensive infrastructure rollouts, and sustained market development initiatives, Varun Beverages Ltd. (VBL) has significantly expanded PepsiCo’s retail presence across India and select international markets. The company’s operations now span 14 countries, including India, Sri Lanka, and Nepal in the Indian subcontinent, as well as 11 countries across Africa, underscoring its position as a key growth partner for PepsiCo in emerging markets. Through backward integration the company has also established facilities for production of preforms, crowns, plastic closures, corrugated boxes, and shrink-wrap films to ensure operational efficiencies and high-quality standards. Over the last few years, VBL’s energy drink “Sting” has grown exponentially, hence accelerating its growth and margins. However, the stock’s underperformance has been most likely on account of slower than expected growth in a few quarters due to early onset of monsoon and rising competitive intensity. Tata Consultancy Services (“TCS”) is India’s largest IT services company. It has a strong global presence especially in key markets of North America and Europe, along with a high-quality customer portfolio. TCS operates across seven major verticals: (a) banking, financial services and insurance, (b) retail & consumer packaged goods, (c) manufacturing, (d) life sciences, (e) hi-tech, (f) telecom, and (g) other niche markets. TCS has proven over long periods of time its ability to execute large multi-service, multi-geo transformation deals across segments like Infrastructure, online applications and Business Process Outsourcing, on the back of its wide set of capabilities. The company has one of the lowest attrition rates in the industry, leading to better preservation of its institutional knowledge. While TCS has the most resilient business models, and one of the best execution engines within the IT services industry globally, the stock underperformed amid a challenging macro environment with demand uncertainty in North America. Grindwell Norton (“GWN”) pioneered the manufacturing of grinding wheels in India in 1941 and became the first majority-owned subsidiary of French major Saint-Gobain in India in 1996. GWN’s businesses include abrasives, ceramics, and plastics (including silicon carbide, performance ceramics and refractories, and performance plastics), as well as a captive IT development centre. The company has significantly increased its capital expenditure (capex) over the last three financial years in order to capture market share across segments globally. The stock witnessed a correction on account of weaker-than-expected operating performance in the abrasives segment, driven by intensified competition from imports, along with subdued growth in the ceramics segment arising from both moderating export demand and softer domestic consumption. Investment Outlook The calendar year so far has been marked by a volatile global macroeconomic environment, shaped by persistent geopolitical tensions, uneven monetary policy actions across major economies, and fluctuating commodity prices. Adding to these pressures, trade tariff–related uncertainty has disrupted global supply chains and clouded the outlook for cross-border trade, further weighing on business confidence and dampening global growth momentum. However, amid these global headwinds, economies such as India have continued to display relative resilience. Supported by benign macroeconomic conditions, including moderating inflation and a favourable policy environment, India has been able to sustain one of the strongest growth trajectories among major economies despite the volatile external backdrop. While India has experienced a cyclical slowdown over the last year, recent high frequency indicators suggest that the deceleration may already be bottoming out. Real GDP growth accelerated to 7.8% in the first quarter of the 2026 financial year (vs. 7.4% in fourth quarter of the 2025 financial year). The expansion was broad-based, with investment gross fixed capital formation growth at 7.8%, private consumption growth at 7.0% and government consumption growth sharply up at 7.4% on a low base in the first quarter of the 2025 financial year due to election-related slowdown in spending. On the positive side, it is likely that the recently announced Goods and Services Tax cuts, the upcoming festive season and strong trends in rural demand will provide a fillip to domestic demand. Moreover, a favourable monsoon season is expected to support rural incomes and consumption, providing an additional tailwind for demand recovery in the coming quarters. From a monetary policy perspective, there is still room for continued easing with inflation expected at 3% for the 2026 financial year end. On balance, India is among the very few economies in the world that possess the full complement of appropriate market conditions backed by pro-reform government policies that aim to deliver sustainable growth over the long term. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 7 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Investment Manager’s Report (continued) 8 Near-term, the imposition of tariffs has understandably generated concerns regarding potential effects on economic growth. Since the beginning of August 2025, President Trump has announced a 25% tariff on India, along with a 25% penalty, which is linked to India’s energy trade with Russia. It is likely that this set of tariff announcements is an opening salvo in a trade negotiation process and ultimately tariffs could settle down at more reasonable levels, in-line with those applied to other trading partners (c.15-25%). However, it is worth highlighting that India remains a largely domestically driven economy, with relatively low trade intensity compared to other emerging markets. Exports to the US (US$87billion in the 2025 financial year) represent approximately 2% of India’s GDP. India’s principal export categories to the US comprise electronics, gems and jewellery, textiles and pharmaceutical products. At present, both electronics and pharma exports remain exempt from tariffs. Beyond merchandise exports, India’s largest export to the US is software services, estimated at c.US$100billion. Importantly, these remain outside the scope of tariff discussions, as the US continues to run a trade surplus in services. From an equity market perspective, the direct impact of tariffs could be more muted than believed, considering less than 2.0% of MSCI India IMI revenue is subject to tariff risk, in our estimates. That said, a prolonged tariff war involving India represents a key downside risk offsetting some of the gains from policy support and improving domestic consumption. Amid tariff-related uncertainty, India’s strong macroeconomic fundamentals have been reinforced by S&P’s recent upgrade of India’s sovereign credit rating from ‘BBB–’ to ‘BBB’. This action follows S&P’s adjustment of India’s outlook to positive in May 2024. The upgrade is attributed to three main factors: improved fiscal management through higher-quality government spending, strong economic growth, and stable monetary policy. With a workforce of nearly 600 million, the need to create enough high productive jobs to benefit from the demographic dividend would remain India’s key challenge in the long term. To boost productivity, the government has undertaken a large number of supply-side measures over the last decade, including (1) labour reforms, (2) reduction in corporate tax rates, (3) bankruptcy reforms, (4) strengthening financial and corporate balance sheets, and, (5) incentives for domestic manufacturing through Production Linked Incentive scheme, among others. These efforts have contributed to a steady rise in manufacturing gross value added, particularly in new-age sectors such as electronics. Continued policy support provides India with strong tailwinds to further scale up manufacturing in multiple sunrise industries, even against the backdrop of near-term tariff-related uncertainties. At the same time, India has also achieved a considerable degree of success in leveraging its skilled workforce to increase its services exports. India’s diversified corporate landscape and steadily improving return ratios reinforce its position as one of the most attractive emerging markets for capturing sustained equity outperformance. Also noteworthy has been the corporate deleveraging and cleaning up of banks’ balance sheets with a marked decline in non-performing loans over the last decade. Near-term tariff-related headwinds notwithstanding, Indian manufacturing is poised to play an increasingly important role in global supply chains. Leading multinationals such as Apple and Samsung continue to expand their production footprint in the country, reinforcing India’s emergence as a strategic hub within the global manufacturing and supply chain ecosystem. Furthermore, India’s services exports–led by IT services and Global Capability Centers (“GCC”)–continue to grow steadily, providing a key cushion to the external sector. Moreover, unlike some of its other large EM peers, India’s economy is inherently much more consumption-oriented than investment driven, and the thrust of policymaking in recent years has been towards capacity building which is likely to ensure that economic growth is sustainable and broad-based and not propelled by a rise in leverage. The Investment Adviser believes that India is at the cusp of realising its true economic potential with young demographics, superior corporate profitability and megatrends of digitalisation and formalisation emerging as the structural drivers of the India growth story. Additionally, the most attractive aspect of investing in India is what we see as the outsized alpha opportunity that the market presents compared to any other equity market globally, particularly as the Indian market is still relatively under-researched. Such alpha opportunities are present across the large, mid, and small cap spectrum. All these factors place India as one of the most promising economies over the medium term and make for a highly compelling investment proposition. Backed by the well-resourced team of the Investment Adviser, Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc is well positioned to capitalise, from a bottom-up perspective, on the investment opportunities on offer within the Indian equities space. Acorn Asset Management Ltd Investment Manager 8 October 2025 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 8 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Top Ten Holdings 9 Percentage of net Value assets As at 30 June 2025 Sector (£’000) (%) ICICI Bank Financials 21,020 4.4 Onesource Specialty Pharma Healthcare 20,885 4.4 Bharti Airtel Communication Services 20,360 4.3 Bajaj Finserv Financials 13,760 2.9 Manjushree Technopack Industrials 13,438 2.8 HDFC Bank Financials 12,328 2.6 Computer Age Management Services Industrials 11,823 2.5 Eternal Consumer Discretionary 11,524 2.4 Info Edge Communication Services 10,846 2.3 Bharat Electronics Industrials 10,515 2.2 Top ten holdings 30.8 Other holdings 70.6 Total holdings 101.4 Capital gains tax provision plus cash and other assets/liabilities (1.4) Total 100.0 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 9 Investment Policy The Company shall invest primarily in securities listed on any recognised stock exchange in India and securities of companies with a Significant Presence in India that are listed on stock exchanges outside India. The Company may also invest up to 12% of Gross Assets (calculated at the time of investment) in unquoted companies with a Significant Presence in India. A company has a “Significant Presence in India” if, at the time of investment, it has its registered office or principal place of business in India, or exercises a material part of its economic activities in India. The Company shall primarily invest in equities and equity-related securities (including preference shares, convertible unsecured loan stock, rights, warrants and other similar securities). The Company may also, in pursuance of the investment objective: • hold publicly traded and privately placed debt instruments (including bonds, notes and debentures); • hold cash and cash equivalents including money market liquid/debt mutual funds; • hold equity-linked derivative instruments (including options and futures on indices and individual securities); • hedge against directional risk using index futures and/or cash; • hold participation notes; and • invest in index funds, listed funds and exchange traded funds. Notwithstanding the above, the Company does not intend to utilise derivatives or other financial instruments to take short positions, nor to increase the Company’s gearing in excess of the limit set out in the borrowing policy, and any restrictions set out in this investment policy shall apply equally to exposure through derivatives. The Company will invest no more than 15% of Gross Assets in any single holding or in the securities of any one issuer (calculated at the time of investment) and will typically invest no more than 40% of Gross Assets in any single sector (calculated at the time of investment). The Company is not restricted to investing in the constituent companies of any benchmark. It is expected that the Company’s portfolio will comprise a minimum of 50 investments. In order to comply with the UK Listing Rules, the Company will not invest more than 10% of Gross Assets in other listed closed-ended investment funds, except that this restriction shall not apply to investments in listed closed-ended investment funds which themselves have stated investment policies to invest no more than 15% of their gross assets in other listed closed-ended investment funds. Additionally, in any event the Company will itself not invest more than 15% of its Gross Assets in other investment companies or investment trusts which are listed on the Official List. The Company does not expect to take controlling interests in investee companies and will at all times invest and manage the portfolio in a manner consistent with spreading investment risk and in accordance with the FPI Regulations and applicable law. It is expected that the Company’s investments will predominantly be exposed to non- sterling currencies (principally Indian rupees) in terms of their revenues and profits. The base currency of the Company is Sterling, which creates a potential currency exposure. Whilst the Company retains the flexibility to do so, it is expected in the normal course that this potential currency exposure will not be hedged using any sort of foreign currency transactions, forward transactions or derivative instruments. No material change will be made to the investment policy without the approval of Shareholders by ordinary resolution. As stated in the Chairman’s Statement, the Board has agreed to a final increase from 12% to 15% in the Company’s limit to invest in gross assets (calculated at the time of investment) in unquoted companies with a Significant Presence in India. An ordinary resolution has been put forward for approval by shareholders at this year’s AGM. Borrowing policy The Company may deploy gearing to seek to enhance long-term capital growth and for the purposes of capital flexibility and efficient portfolio management. The Company may be geared through bank borrowings, the use of derivative instruments that have the Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Investment Policy, Results and Key Performance Indicators 10 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 10 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 11 effect of gearing the Company’s portfolio, and any such other methods as the Board may determine. Gearing will not exceed 20% of Net Asset Value at the time of drawdown of the relevant borrowings or entering into the relevant transaction, as appropriate. Asset allocation at year end The breakdown of the top ten holdings and the industrial classification of the portfolio at the Company’s year-end are shown on page 9. Dividend policy The Board intends to manage the Company’s affairs to achieve Shareholder returns through capital growth rather than income. Therefore, it should not be expected that the Company will pay an annual dividend. Regulation 19 of the Investment Trust (Approved Company) (Tax) Regulations 2011 provides that, subject to certain exceptions, an investment trust may not retain more than 15% of its income in respect of each accounting period. Accordingly, the Company may declare an annual dividend from time to time for the purpose of seeking to maintain its status as an investment trust. Results and dividend The Company’s revenue surplus after tax for the year amounted to £675,000 (30 June 2024: revenue surplus of £308,000). The Company made a capital loss after tax of £1,728,000 (30 June 2024: capital surplus of £96,345,000). Therefore, the total loss after tax for the Company was £1,053,000 (30 June 2024: surplus of £96,653,000). The Board has declared an interim dividend of 0.5p per Ordinary Share in respect of the year ended 30 June 2025 in accordance with the Company’s Dividend policy as outlined in above paragraph. Key performance indicators The Board measures the Company’s success in attaining its investment objective by reference to the following KPIs: (i) Achievement of NAV and share price growth over the long term The Board monitors both the NAV and share price performance and compares them with the MSCI India IMI (in sterling terms). Areview of performance is undertaken at each quarterly Board meeting and the reasons for relative under and over performance against various comparators is discussed. The Company’s NAV and share price total returns for the year to 30 June 2025 were –0.2% and –0.9% (30 June 2024: 35.5% and 35.9%) respectively compared to a total return of –6.6% (30 June 2024: 37.7%) for the MSCI India IMI (in sterling terms). The Chairman’s statement on pages 3 to 5 incorporates a review of the highlights during the year. The Investment Manager’s Report on pages 6 to 8 highlights investments made during the year and how performance has been achieved. (ii) Performance of premium or discount of share price to NAV that is comparable to its peers Company’s Broker monitors the premium or discount on an ongoing basis and keeps the Board updated as and when appropriate. At quarterly Board meetings the Board reviews the premium or discount in the period since the previous meeting in comparison with other investment trusts within the AIC India/Indian Subcontinent sector. The Company has a redemption facility through which Shareholders will be entitled to request the redemption of all or part of their holding of Ordinary Shares on an annual basis. The Company’s shares traded at a premium of 0.9% on 30 June 2025 (30June 2024: premium of 1.7%). (iii) Maintenance of a comparable level of ongoing charges (excluding performance fee) The Board receives monthly management accounts which contain an analysis of expenditure, and these are formally reviewed at quarterly Board meetings. The Management Engagement 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 11 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Investment Policy, Results and Other Information (continued) 12 Committee formally reviews the fees payable to the Company’s main service providers on an annual basis. The Board reviews the ongoing charges on a quarterly basis and considers these to be reasonable in comparison to other investment trusts within the AIC India/Indian Subcontinent sector. Based on the Company’s average net assets during the year ended 30 June 2025, the Company’s ongoing charges figure calculated in accordance with the AIC methodology was 0.2% (30June 2024: 0.5%). 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 12 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Risk and Risk Management 13 Principal and emerging risks and uncertainties The Board is responsible for the management of risks faced by the Company and delegates the review process of this to the Audit Committee (the “Committee”). The Committee carries out, at least annually, a robust assessment of principal and emerging risks and uncertainties and monitors the risks on an ongoing basis. The last review was carried out in October 2025. The Committee has a dynamic risk register and heat map in place to help identify key risks in the business and oversee the effectiveness of internal controls and processes, providing a visual reflection of the Company’s identified principal and emerging risks. The Committee considers both the impact and the probability of each risk occurring and ensures appropriate controls are in place to reduce risk to an acceptable level. The Board has carried out a robust assessment of the principal and emerging risks facing the Company, including those that would threaten its business model, future performance, solvency or liquidity. As part of this assessment, the Committee received updates from the Investment Manager, the Investment Adviser, the Company Secretary and other service providers. The Committee considered a number of emerging risks that could potentially impact the Company’s ability to meet its strategic objectives. Risks such as trade tariffs or armed conflicts were considered and not seen as new principal or emerging risks but those that exacerbate existing risks and have been incorporated accordingly in the table below. The following table provides a summary of the Board’s assessment of the Company’s principal risks as well as an explanation of how these are being managed or mitigated. The “Trend” column on the right highlights at a glance the Board’s assessment of any increases or decreases in risk during the year after mitigation and management. The arrows show the risks as increased, decreased or unchanged. Description Mitigation Trend The Investment Adviser has a proven and extensive track record with a focus on good corporate governance and continuously monitor the position and report regularly to the Board on market developments. India is to a degree protected from global economic downdrafts and increases in world inflation as it is a relatively closed economy and not as vulnerable to high and rising energy prices as in the past. In addition, India is not saddled with the debt problems of Europe and the US and the currency should therefore remain stable or appreciate against the currencies of its main trading partners. Whilst not immune from disrupted global trade, including those recently caused by US tariff policies, India may benefit from a change of supply lines from China in particular. The Company does not have any direct or indirect exposure to conflict prone regions in Europe or the Middle East. The Board addresses geopolitical risks through regular challenge of the Investment Adviser and continues to monitor these issues as they arise. Economic, market and geopolitical risks Changes in general economic and market conditions in India including, for example, interest rates, cost increase, rates of inflation, industry conditions, competition, tax laws, and other factors could substantially and adversely affect the Company’s prospects. Weak economic and market conditions in Europe and the US may lead to foreign disinvestment in Indian equities (the “flight to quality”). Political developments globally might materially affect the ability of the Company to achieve its investment objective. Factors such as armed conflicts, sanctions and trade tariffs could impact market volatility and sentiment. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 13 Description Mitigation Trend The Company’s investment policy states that no single holding will represent more than 15% of the Company’s Gross Assets and no more than 40% of Gross Assets will be invested in any single sector (calculated at the time of investment). The investment policy allows a minimum of 50 investments to be held in the portfolio to assist with diversification. The Investment Adviser seeks to invest in high quality companies with strong balance sheets and sustainable business models. The Board measures the Company’s performance for reference purposes against the MSCI India IMI (in sterling terms). The Board also monitors performance relative to the Company’s peer group over a range of periods, taking into account the differing investment policies and objectives. Sectoral diversification Concentration of investments in any one sector may result in greater volatility in the value of the Company’s investments and consequently its NAV and may materially and adversely affect the performance of the Company and returns to Shareholders. Each of the contracts with the Company’s key service providers were entered into after full and proper consideration of the quality and cost of services offered, including the financial control systems in operation in so far as they relate to the affairs of the Company. All of the key service providers are subject to ongoing oversight by the Management Engagement Committee and their services are reviewed on an annual basis. The Board monitors key personnel risks as part of its oversight of the Investment Manager and the Investment Adviser and seeks assurance of appropriate succession planning and the adoption of a team based approach to mitigate this risk. The Company’s key service providers report periodically to the Board on their control procedures including those in respect of cyber security risks. Operational risks The Board has contractually delegated to external agencies the management of the investment portfolio, the custodial services (which include the safeguarding of the assets), the registration services and the accounting and company secretarial services. The Company is reliant upon the performance of its key third party service providers for its executive function. Failure by any service provider to carry out its obligations to the Company in accordance with the terms of its appointment could have a material adverse effect on the operation of the Company. Cyber security risks could lead to breaches of confidentiality, loss of data records and the inability to make investment decisions. The growing use of artificial intelligence has increased the risk from cyber crime. The Company has contracted out relevant services to appropriately qualified professionals. The Investment Manager and the Company Secretary report on regulatory matters to the Board on a quarterly basis. The assessment of regulatory risks forms part of the Board’s risk assessment programme. The Board reviews compliance and internal controls reports provided by its service providers, as well as the Company’s financial statements and revenue forecasts. Shareholder documents and announcements, including the Company’s published half yearly and annual reports and financial statements, are subject to stringent review processes. The Company Secretary presents a quarterly report on changes in the regulatory environment, including AIC updates, and how changes have been addressed. Regulatory risks Breaches of Section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act could result in loss of investment trust status. Loss of investment trust status would lead to the Company being subject to tax on any gains on the disposal of its investments. Breaches of the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”)’s rules applicable to listed entities could result in financial penalties or suspension of trading of the Company’s shares on the London Stock Exchange (“LSE”). Breaches of the Companies Act 2006, The Alternative Investment Fund Managers’ Directive, Accounting Standards, The UKListing Rules, Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules, Prospectus Rules or other regulations with which the Company is required to comply could result in financial penalties or legal proceedings against the Company or its Directors. Failure of the Investment Manager to meet its regulatory obligations could have adverse consequences on the Company. Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Risk and Risk Management (continued) 14 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 14 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 15 Description Mitigation Trend ESG and Climate Change The Company could suffer as a result of increased investor demand for products which promote ESG investments. Climate change and climate change policies may lead to additional costs and risks for portfolio companies. The Investment Adviser considers various factors when evaluating potential investments, including environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) and climate change. The Investment Adviser has implemented an ESG Policy which ensures integration of ESG methodology into the investment process, with a strong focus on all these areas. The Investment Adviser is a signatory to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment and integrates these principles into its investment approach. In addition, the Investment Adviser uses its own proprietary internal framework, ABLExTM, for ESG risk assessment. The Investment Adviser closely monitors businesses which have a greater exposure to climate change related risks and their progress towards a low-carbon transition. The investment policy states that while the Company retains the flexibility to do so, it is expected in the normal course of business that currency exposure will not be hedged. The Company does not currently have any borrowings, therefore is not exposed to interest rate risk. The Company’s financial risks are disclosed in note 15 to the financial statements. Financial risks The Company’s investment activities expose it to a variety of financial risks which include foreign currency risk and interest rate risk. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 15 RESPONSIBLE INVESTMENT APPROACH Recognising the potential impact of businesses on the environment and communities FUNDAMENTAL RESEARCH SUSTAINING VALUE Enabling sustained value creation for the long-term STEWARDSHIP Collaborating with stakeholders in building sustainable business practices TRANSPARENCY Communicating with our stakeholders on key ESG aspects at regular intervals Evaluating and integrating the impact of environmental, social and governance factors into our investment approach Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Environmental, Social and Governance Policy 16 As an investment company with no employees, property or activities outside investment, environmental policy has limited application. The Company’s Investment Adviser, Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners strive to help their clients achieve their long-term financial goals through a thoughtful and disciplined approach to managing investments. They believe that Environmental, Social, and Governance (“ESG”) principles are crucial to developing resilient companies and assets that deliver long-term value for investors. Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners are committed to integrating ESG into their investment process and operating philosophy. This ESG Policy Statement establishes the position for Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners to integrate ESG in its business and investment activities. The policy statement also explains what Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners expects from the businesses that it invests in and how it engages with them on issues related to ESG, so that they can drive positive change. Investment Philosophy Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners seek to derive returns by investing in high-quality businesses. To assess the quality of a business, they seek to determine the long-term sustainability of return on capital, potential scalability of the business, execution capability of the management, and the organisation’s corporate governance culture. These insights help them identify great businesses that they seek to invest in. Since sustainability of returns and corporate governance form an important element of the investment philosophy, Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners’ investment approach naturally integrates Environment, Social, and Governance factors in their decision-making process. They value businesses with industry-leading environmental compliance practices and those that demonstrate ethical business conduct and fair dealings with stakeholders. Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners believe that a business with sustainable ESG practices has a better chance at survival and growth in the longer term. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 16 ".%-1%!"-,!$0+)1%-.% "&3((0165211317(30$0&( 71,'8($-&+$3$&5(3,45,&4 "5$9$.(35514536&563$.&+$0(4 11-)13'(4,3('$553,%65(4 $%+/)&2!+$-%.%!-#( '-%!/"0.)+%..%. 0$.94(,0'(25+ !$,05$,0101,03(4($3&+ 44(443(.$5,7(3($50(44 +1%./)+/(%!//-!#/)1%21!0%$ #$,5605,.7$.6((/(3(4 &58+(012213560,59 23(4(054 Investment Universe Great Businesses Attractive Value Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 17 ESG Investment Approach The Board and the Investment Adviser believe in a holistic sustainable framework driven by the Company’s guiding principles. The following five principles are intended to be the guiding axioms under which investment management and investment advisory activities are conducted. ESG Integration ESG integration is considered an important enabler at mitigating risk and enhancing overall returns. The Investment Adviser believes that good ESG practices can impact the performance of businesses positively and enable the generation of long-term value for the stakeholders. The Investment Adviser uses an internally developed framework called ABLExTM (Assessment of business longevity and excellence) for ESG risk assessment. The framework contains a list of sector specific ESG risks and opportunities against which a company’s performance is measured and rated. The result of this assessment is integrated into the valuation of a business. Process of ESG Integration a. Identification and Screening b. ESG Research and Assessment c. Stewardship a. Identification and Screening The initiation of the investment process happens by distilling from a broad investible universe of businesses, where investment opportunities are screened for poor governance policies, poor ESG track record (including material controversies) and weak business characteristics. Besides this, some of the strategies may have their exclusion list i.e., a list of companies that are excluded from the strategy’s investment universe. This exclusion could be product-related and/or normative exclusions for companies with controversial behaviour. The investment universe is reviewed and refreshed on a semi-annual basis to ensure the team is abreast of addition/deletion of new names. b. Research and Assessment The primary reliance is made on publicly available data sources for the ESG research. Moreover, any critical ESG insights are also derived from management interactions, channel checks and factory visits. The information gathered from various sources are mapped against the relevant ESG risk factors and assessed under the ABLExTM framework. This leads to understanding of the efficacy of a company’s ESG policies and practices against the risk it faces. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 17 Environment • Green House Gas emissions • Waste management • Natural resource utilisation • Protection of biodiversity • Environmental Opportunities Social • welfare • Product safety to end users • Worker’s health and safety • Human rights compliance Governance • Appropriate accounting practices • Anti-corruption and bribery • Board independence and diversity • Alignment of interests with minority shareholders • Ethical business conduct • Fair dealing with investors and other stakeholders Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Environmental, Social and Governance Policy (continued) 18 The data provided by third party research providers is also leveraged and combined with the diligence in evaluation of ESG practices of a company. Indicative list of factors considered under ESG assessment. c. Stewardship Stewardship comprises the identification of material investment risks, active monitoring of holdings, engagement and proxy voting (where applicable). Stewardship is a key element of our responsible investment approach because Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners believes in the steering power of capital and that how it is invested can contribute positively to society and the environment. Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners has adopted stewardship via engagement and voting. i) Engagement The Investment Adviser believe the value of engagement is best derived from direct dialogue with companies in which they invest. Hence, engagement forms an integral part of their ESG assessment process. They follow a positive engagement approach whereby they interact with managements of underlying businesses to gain additional understanding and encourage them to take necessary steps that would impact the business positively and enhance the value of our investments. For businesses rated best in class, the Investment Adviser’s engagement approach centres around leveraging opportunities for enhanced value creation. Conversely, they also engage with businesses where they see strong potential and scope for ESG performance improvement. The Investment Adviser’s engagement mechanism takes place through various modes such as meetings, emails, investor calls and proxy voting. They engage with businesses on a variety of issues including ESG matters that present a potential material risk to their performance. ii) Voting The Investment Adviser consider and vote on company resolutions with the objectives of maximising long-term investment returns, fostering best corporate governance practices, social responsibility and environmental stewardship. Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners adopt and implement their voting rights and duties as per their internal voting policy and procedures. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 18 Develop further understanding of ESG issues material to the business. Maintain a dialogue on ESG issues to seek improvement in performance and processes. Enhance analysis of the portfolios’ risk and opportunities. Objectives of engagement at White Oak Capital Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 19 Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners ensure that all their voting decisions are taken in the best interests of their clients. The key identified issues related to underlying businesses are discussed within the investment team. In case there is a conflict of interest or appearance of a conflict of interest, the Investment Adviser will cast the proxy votes in a manner consistent with the best interests of their clients. Voting may take place on several ESG related or investment matters and therefore each voting matter is considered on a case-by-case basis within the context of the policy. Internal Reporting Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners’ ESG team, which includes dedicated ESG analysts and sector-level ESG analysts, regularly reports portfolio level ESG ratings (based on both internal and third-party ratings), rating changes in portfolio companies, engagement status, ESG regulations update etc. to the broader investment team. This helps the investment team understand portfolio strengths and realise the areas of improvement. Internal reporting also includes details on portfolio performance on key ESG risk factors, which can further be drilled down to sector-wise performance on these factors. This provides more granular insights on the factors and sectors with scope for an improvement. Commitment to ESG As part of Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners’ commitment to responsible investing, it is a signatory to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI). The UNPRI is a network of international investors working together to put the sixPrinciples for Responsible Investment into practice. Moreover, Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners support the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (“TCFD”) which promotes increased transparency, encourages the development of tools and methods to manage climate-related risks and opportunities and contributes to the best practices in the industry. The Investment Adviser refer to the frameworks provided under the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the UNprinciples on Business and Human Rights in assessing the impact of the Company’s portfolio companies’ products, policies, and operations on sustainability outcomes. Reporting The Investment Adviser is committed to being transparent with its investors, shareholders, and other stakeholders about their ESG initiatives, success, and goals. Reporting includes the Investment Adviser’s UN PRI Transparency Report, which describes their initiatives and progress during the year as well as expected activities for the year to come, is produced annually and is available to its clients and beneficiaries upon request. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 19 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Environmental, Social and Governance Policy (continued) 20 ESG Case Studies Example case studies can be found below, demonstrating our Investment Adviser’s approach to engagement with investee companies, with the objective of improving their overall ESG practices and policies: Case Study 1 – A power producer The power producer company has consistently been increasing its share of renewable in its total capacity mix. Further, it has set an ambitious capacity expansion target on renewables. The Investment Adviser engaged with the company to gain a better understanding of their transition plans. The topics of discussions included the company’s short term and long term GHG emissions reduction targets. During the engagement, the company emphasised that its targets were aligned to a 1.5-degree scenario, and the target is derived following SBTi’s Sectoral Decarbonization Approach (“SDA”) for the power sector. The engagement helped provided important insights on the company’s goals. Case Study 2 – A consumer product company The newly listed consumer company had very limited disclosures on sustainability in its offering document. The Investment Advisor engaged with the company to understand their plan towards sustainability. In the engagement, the company highlighted on its current practices, towards fuel reduction, re-usage of waste, share of renewable energy in total consumption. Further, it mentioned that the company was in the process of setting up a short-term target and has also set up an organisational structure for ESG responsibility. Based on the insights shared by management, the Investment Adviser found the company to be mindful of its environmental and social footprint and taking active measures to address sustainability related issues. Approach to Climate Change The implications of climate change are creating rapidly changing regulations and consumer demands around the world. Mitigation of climate change and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions are now widely perceived as major global challenges. Governments, businesses, and investors have a responsibility towards ensuring a climate-resilient economy. As mentioned above, the Investment Adviser supports the recommendations of the TCFD which promotes increased transparency, encourages the development of tools and methods to manage climate-related risks and opportunities and contributes to the best practices in the industry. Businesses which have a greater exposure to climate change related risks and their progress towards a low-carbon transition are closely monitored. Company values The Board has adopted a policy of fostering high standards of corporate governance in all its activities. This principle is the cornerstone of creating and preserving long-term shareholder value. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 20 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Stakeholder Engagement – Section 172 Report 21 During the year the Board discharged its duty under section 172 of the Companies Act 2006 to promote the success of the Company for the benefit of its members as a whole, having regard to the interests of all stakeholders. As an externally managed investment trust, the Company has no employees, operations or premises. The Board has identified its key stakeholders as the Company’s shareholders, the Investment Manager and the Investment Adviser, other service providers, the Investee companies and wider society and the environment. The table below explains how the Directors have engaged with, and maintained high standards of business conduct and fair treatment of, all stakeholders and outlines key activities undertaken and decisions made by the Board. Stakeholders Importance Board Engagement The Board actively promotes engagement with the Company’s Shareholders through various channels in order to maintain a high level of transparency and accountability. The Board encourages all Shareholders to attend and vote at the AGM. There is an online presentation from the Investment Manager and it provides an opportunity for Shareholders to engage directly with the Board and the Investment Manager and the Investment Adviser. The Company’s website www.ashokaindiaequity.com hosts a number of useful information and documents such as the annual and half yearly reports, factsheets as well as webinars and coverage in key publications. These communications provide Shareholders with a comprehensive insight into the Company’s progress and results. The Board maintains regular contact with Shareholders through the Investment Manager, the Investment Adviser and Broker’s programme of Shareholder meetings throughout the year. All parties report to the Board on investor engagement and sentiment. The Chairman is available to meet major Shareholders to understand their views and help inform the Board’s decision-making process. The Board works with Kepler Partners and Lansons on promoting the Company through the publication of research notes and publication of articles through various media platforms. In response to shareholder demand, the Board has established a share issuance programme whereby during the year, 14,849,496 new shares were issued by way of block listing, generating additional funds of £42,218,000. The Company has a redemption facility through which Shareholders are entitled to request the redemption of all or part of their holding of Ordinary Shares on an annual basis allowing Shareholders to realise their investment. On 4 September 2025, the Company announced that 2,549,082 valid redemption requests had been received for the 30September 2025 Redemption Point (representing 1.5% of the issued share capital at that point). Shareholder support is critical to both the continued existence of the Company and the successful delivery of its long-term strategy. The Board is mindful of its duty to act fairly between Shareholders and is focused on fostering good working relationships and understanding the views of with all Shareholders. Shareholders 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 21 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Stakeholder Engagement – Section 172 Report (continued) 22 Stakeholders Importance Board Engagement Investment Manager and Investment Adviser The Investment Manager and the Investment Adviser are the Company’s most significant service providers, and their performance is critical for the Company to deliver its investment strategy and meet its objective. A description of their roles can be found on pages 27 and 28. The Company’s Ordinary Shares trade on the London Stock Exchange and the Board receives updates on share trading activity and share price performance from the Investment Manager, Investment Adviser and the Broker. The Investment Manager and the Investment Adviser attend all Board meetings and provide an update on the performance of the investments in the portfolio and the implementation of the investment strategy and objective. On the 5 August 2025, the Company announced the appointment of Hiren Dasani as the Company’s co-portfolio manager, further strengthening the team. At each meeting, the Board discusses the portfolio with the Investment Manager and the Investment Adviser and maintains a constructive dialogue between meetings. The Investment Manager’s remuneration is by way of a performance fee subject to the Company delivering excess returns above the MSCI India IMI (in sterling terms) in the medium term, which aligns the Investment Manager’s interests with those of Shareholders. The Management Engagement Committee reviews the performance and remuneration of the Investment Manager annually. The Board occasionally engages in a due diligence trip to Mumbai and Singapore to visit the Investment Adviser’s offices. Other Key Service Providers Strong relationships with key external service providers is central to the Directors’ decision-making process as a Board of an externally managed investment trust company. The Board maintains regular contact with its other key service providers such as the Broker, Administrator, Company Secretary and Custodian, both through the Board and Committee meetings, as well as outside of the regular meeting cycle. The Management Engagement Committee reviews all material third party service providers and makes recommendations to the Board on their continued appointments. The Company is a long-term investor, and the Investment Manager and the Investment Adviser incorporate ESG matters into their analysis and decision-making processes. The Investment Adviser’s ESG Policy statement can be found on page 16 which explains how ESG matters have influenced the Investment Manager and the Investment Adviser’s investment decisions. The Board receives regular updates on engagement with investee companies at each Board meeting. The Board visits Mumbai and Singapore occasionally and this provides an opportunity to meet with some of the investee companies and analysts to better understand the businesses held in the portfolio. The Company is committed to responsible investing and actively monitors the activities of investee companies through its delegation to the Investment Manager. Investee Companies 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 22 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 23 Examples of stakeholder consideration during the year The Board’s key decisions during the year under review included: • A change to the Company’s investment policy to increase the Company’s limit to invest in gross assets (calculated at the time of investment) in unquoted companies with a Significant Presence in India from 10% to 12% which was deemed non material. The Board subsequently agreed to a further increase to 15% This latter amount is subject to shareholder approval at the forthcoming AGM in December 2025. • Following a review of company secretarial and administration services, the Board approved the appointment of NSM Funds (UK) Limited to replace Apex Listed Companies Services (UK) Limited with effect from 2 January 2025. • The Company has declared a dividend of 0.5p per share to be paid on 31 October 2025 to shareholders on the register as at 10October 2025. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 23 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Additional Information 24 Exercise of voting powers and stewardship code The Board has delegated to the Investment Manager the power to vote on behalf of the Company at shareholder meetings of investee companies. The provisions of the UK Stewardship Code do not apply to the Company as all investments are outside the United Kingdom. The Investment Manager’s investment process includes research into the corporate governance practices of potential investee companies, regular shareholder engagement and active stewardship. The Investment Manager’s voting policy and conflicts of interest policy are reviewed by the Board annually. Modern slavery disclosure The prevention of modern slavery is an important part of good corporate governance. As an investment trust, the Company does not offer goods or services to consumers and deals predominantly with professional advisers and service providers in the normal course of its business. As such the Board considers that the Company is out of scope of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. Although the Board believes the risk of modern slavery and human trafficking occurring in the Company’s supply chain is low, when selecting portfolio investments, the Investment Manager and Adviser assess modern slavery risks, including a review for any evidence of human rights violations as a part of the ESG risk assessment framework. The Board requires all third-party providers to report on their compliance with the Modern Slavery Act as part of the annual review by the Management Engagement Committee. The Company believes that it is in Shareholders’ interests to consider human rights issues, including modern slavery, when selecting and retaining investments. Further details can be found in the Company’s environment, social and governance policy on pages16 to 20. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) The Company has no employees or premises, and therefore has no greenhouse gas emissions to report. Nor does it have responsibility for any other emissions producing sources under the Companies Act 2006 (Strategic Report and Directors’ Reports) Regulations 2013. As the Company has no material operations and therefore has low energy usage, it has not included an energy and carbon report. Anti-bribery and corruption It is the Company’s policy to conduct all of its business in an honest and ethical manner. The Company takes a zero-tolerance approach to bribery and corruption and is committed to acting professionally, fairly and with integrity in all its business dealings and relationships wherever it operates. The Company’s policy and the procedures that implement it are designed to support that commitment. Prevention of the Facilitation of Tax Evasion The Board has adopted a zero-tolerance approach to the criminal facilitation of tax evasion. Employees The Company has no employees. As at 30 June 2025, the Company had four non-executive Directors, of whom three are male and one is female. The Board’s policy on diversity is contained in the corporate governance report on page 36. Viability statement The Board has assessed the viability of the Company for the period to 30 June 20 28 (the “Period”). The Board believes that the Period, being three years, is an appropriate time frame over which to assess the viability of the Company, particularly when taking into account the long-term nature of the Company’s investment strategy, which is modelled over three years and the principal and emerging risks outlined above. Based on this assessment, the Board have a reasonable expectation that the Company will be able to continue to operate and to meet its liabilities as they fall due over the Period. In its assessment of the prospects of the Company, the Board has considered the Company’s business model and each of the principal and emerging risks set out above, including the continued armed conflicts and trade tariffs and the impact these could have on the Company. The Board has considered the Company’s income and expenditure projections and the fact that the Company’s investments comprise readily realisable securities, with 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 24 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 25 93.3% of the portfolio invested in exchange listed securities and 6.7% in unlisted companies. These could, if necessary, be sold to meet the Company’s funding requirements including buying back shares in order for the Company’s discount control policy to be achieved. Additionally, the Board has considered the liquidity and solvency of the Company and concluded that it remains viable. Portfolio changes, market developments, level of premium or discount to NAV and share buybacks and share issues are discussed at quarterly Board meetings. Whilst the Company received redemption requests in respect of its redemption facility of 2,549,082 Ordinary Shares during the year under review, this was overwhelmingly offset by the level of share issuances undertaken and positive performance during the year to 30 June 2025. The internal control framework of the Company is subject to aformal review on at least an annual basis. The Board does not expect there to be any material increase in the annual ongoing charges of the Company over the Period and as the Company grows the annual ongoing charges ratio is expected to decrease. The Company’s income from investments and cash realisable from the sale of its investments provide substantial cover to the Company’s operating expenses, and any other costs likely to be faced by the Company over the period of the assessment. Based on the results of this review, the Directors have formed a reasonable expectation that the Company will continue in its operations and meet its expenses and liabilities as they fall due over the course of the three year period. Outlook The outlook for the Company is discussed in the Chairman’s Statement on pages 3 to 5 and Investment Manager’s Report on pages 6 to 8. For and on behalf of the Board Andrew Watkins Chairman of the Board 8 October 2025 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 25 ASHOKA INDIA EQUITY INVESTMENT TRUST PLC ACORN ASSET MANAGMENT LTD (MAURITIUS) (INVESTMENT MANAGER or AIFM) ASHOKA WHITEOAK CAPITAL PARTNERS PTE. LTD. (SINGAPORE) (INVESTMENT ADVISER) Prashant Khema (Founder) Hiren Dasani (CIO - Emerging Markets) Manoj Garg (Director – Investments) Ayush Abhijeet (Director – Investments) Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Investment Team 26 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg01-26.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 26 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Directors’ Report 27 The Directors present their report and accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025. Strategic report The Strategic Report can be found on pages 3 to 26. Corporate governance The Corporate Governance Statement on page 33 forms part of this Directors’ Report. Principal and emerging risks The principal and emerging risks on pages 13 to 15 forms part of this report. Legal and taxation status The Company is an investment company within the meaning of Section 833 of the Companies Act 2006. The Company conducts its affairs in order to meet the requirements for approval as an investment trust under section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act2010. The Company has received approval as an investment trust and the Company must meet eligibility conditions and ongoing requirements in order for investment trust status to be maintained. In the opinion of the Directors, the Company has met the conditions and requirements for approval as an investment trust for the year ended 30June 2025. Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (“AIFMD”) The Company is classified as an Alternative Investment Fund under AIFMD and is therefore required to have an Alternative Investment Fund Manager. Acorn Asset Management Limited has been appointed as the Alternative Investment Fund Manager (the ‘AIFM’) of the Company for the purposes of the AIFMD. Market information The Company’s Ordinary Shares are listed on the LSE. The NAV per Ordinary Share is calculated in sterling for each business day that the LSE is open for business. The daily NAV per Ordinary Share is published through a regulatory information service. Retail distribution of Investment Company shares via financial advisers and other third-party promoters As a result of the FCA rules determining which investment products can be promoted to retail investors, certain investment products are classified as ‘non-mainstream pooled investment’ products and face restrictions on their promotion to retail investors. The Company has concluded that the distribution of its Ordinary Shares, being shares in an investment trust, is not restricted as a result of the FCA rules described above. The Company currently conducts its affairs so that the shares issued by the Company can be recommended by financial advisers to retail investors and intends to continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Investment Manager Acorn Asset Management Limited (“Acorn”) has been appointed as the Company’s investment manager (“Investment Manager or AIFM”). The Investment Manager is responsible for management of the Company’s assets. The Investment Manager does not receive a fixed management fee in respect of its portfolio management services to the Company. The Investment Manager is instead entitled to a performance fee subject to the investment returns of the portfolio outperforming the MSCI India IMI (in sterling terms) over a three-year period. The Investment Manager will only accrue a performance fee at the end of each Performance Period of threeyears, provided they outperform the benchmark. The First Performance Period ended approximately three years from 6 July 2018, at the balance sheet date of the Company’s third annual financial results in 2021. The Investment Manager agreed to be paid the performance fee in Ordinary Shares. The first tranche of performance shares was allotted to the Investment Manager in the first week of October 2021. The Investment Manager’s Second Performance Period ended approximately three years from the date of the end of the First Performance Period at the balance sheet date of the Company’s sixth annual financial results in 2024. The performance fee is subject to the investment returns of the portfolio outperforming the GOVERNANCE 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 27 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Directors’ Report (continued) 28 MSCI India IMI (in sterling terms) over the three-year period prior to payment of that performance fee. The Investment Manager has agreed to be paid the performance fee in Ordinary Shares. The second tranche of performance shares was allotted to the Investment Manager in the third week of October 2024. The Company’s Net Asset Value, which is calculated and released daily, always reflects the full liability of the performance fee. Further details on the performance fee can be found in note 7. The Investment Management Agreement is terminable by either the Investment Manager or the Company giving to the other not less than six months’ written notice, such notice not to expire earlier than the third anniversary of first admission to trading on the Main Market of the LSE. Investment Adviser As permitted by the terms of the Investment Management Agreement, the Investment Manager has, with the consent of the Company, appointed Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners Pte. Ltd. (“Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners” or “Investment Adviser”), a boutique investment advisory firm located in Singapore, to provide certain non-binding, non-exclusive and recommendatory investment advisory services to it. The Investment Adviser is not entitled to any fees from the Company. Through its contractual arrangements with the Investment Adviser, the Company’s Investment Manager continues to benefit from the expertise of key individuals within the Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Group. Management engagement In accordance with the FCA’s UK Listing Rules (“UKLR”), the Board confirms that it has reviewed whether to retain Acorn Asset Management Limited as the Investment Manager of the Company. The Board is satisfied that the Investment Manager has the suitable skills and experience to manage the Company’s investments and believes that the continuing appointment of the Investment Manager is in the best interests of Shareholders as a whole. Company Secretary and Administrator NSM Funds (UK) Limited was appointed on 2 January 2025 to provide company secretarial and administration services to the Company. Apex Listed Companies Services (UK) Limited provided this service until 31 December 2024. The Board has had continuous direct access to the advice and services of the Company Secretary who is responsible for ensuring that the Board and Committee procedures are followed, and that applicable rules and regulations are complied with. The Company Secretary provides full company secretarial services to the Company, ensuring that it complies with all legal, regulatory, and corporate governance requirements and officiating at Board meetings and Shareholders’ meetings. The Company Secretary is also responsible to the Board for ensuring timely delivery of information and reports and that the statutory obligations of the Company are met. Finally, the Company Secretary is responsible for advising the Board through the Chairman on all governance matters. Custodian Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited, has been appointed as the Company’s Custodian to safeguard the Company’s cash and investments. Capital structure and voting rights As at 30 June 2025, the Company’s issued share capital comprised 50,000 Non-Redeemable Shares of £1.00 each (‘Management Shares’) and 170,741,893 Ordinary Shares (30June 2024: 155,892,397). Each Ordinary Share held entitles the holder to one vote. All Ordinary Shares carry equal voting rights and there are no restrictions on those voting rights. Voting deadlines are stated in the Notice of Meeting and Form of Proxy and are in accordance with the Companies Act 2006. Since the year end and to the date of the publication of this annual report, the Company has issued 750,000 new Ordinary Shares. There are no restrictions on the transfer of shares, nor are there any limitations or special rights associated with the Ordinary Shares. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 28 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 29 Substantial shareholding As at 30 June 2025, the Company was aware of the following substantial interests in the voting rights of the Company: Shareholder Holding % Evelyn Partners Limited 17,602,128 10.31 Rathbones Investment Management Limited 15,142,135 8.87 Hargreaves Lansdown 14,223,783 8.33 Interactive Investor 12,419,467 7.27 Charles Stanley Group plc 10,914,410 6.39 AJ Bell 7,250,351 4.25 JM Finn & Co 6,877,968 4.03 Vermeer Partners 5,232,456 3.06 Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management 5,125,578 3.00 At the latest practicable date prior to the publication of this report, the Company has not been notified of any changes to the above interests. Settlement of Ordinary Share transactions Ordinary Share transactions in the Company are settled by the CREST share settlement system. Re-appointment of the Auditor The Company’s Auditor, Ernst & Young LLP, having expressed their willingness to continue in office as auditors, will be put forward for re-appointment at the Company’s Annual General Meeting and the Board will seek authority to determine their remuneration for the forthcoming year. Going concern The Directors have adopted the going concern basis in preparing the accounts. The following is a summary of the Directors’ assessment of the going concern status of the Company. The Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the period to 31 December 2026, which is at least 12 months from the date of this document. In reaching this conclusion, the Directors have considered the liquidity of the Company’s portfolio of investments as well as its cash position, income and expense flows and any funds required to be returned to Shareholders under the redemption facility. The Company’s net assets at 30 June 2025 were £476.2 million (30June 2024: £435.4 million). As at 30June 2025, the Company held £450.6 million (30 June 2024: £448.4 million) in quoted investments and cash of £27.4 million (30 June 2024: £5.7million). The total expenses (excluding performance fees) for the year ended 30 June 2025 were £1 million (30 June 2024: £1.5million), which represented approximately 0.2% (30June 2024: 0.5%) of average net assets during the year. The Company has a redemption facility through which Shareholders, provided normal market conditions prevail, will be entitled to request the redemption of all or part of their holding of Ordinary Shares on an annual basis allowing Shareholders to realise their investment.This annual redemption facility is subject to the final approval of the Board. On 4 September 2025, the Company announced that valid redemption requests in respect of 2,549,082 Ordinary Shares had been received for the 30September 2025 Redemption Point (representing 1.5% of the issued share capital at that point). At the date of approval of these Financial Statements, based on the aggregate of investments and cash held, the Company has substantial liquidity, operating expenses and redemption facility cover. Auditor independence and information The Board believes that auditor independence is safeguarded by the following measures: the extent of non-audit work which may be carried out by the auditor is restricted and receives pre-approval by the Audit Committee; the auditor has provided its independence policies and the safeguards and procedures it has developed to respond to challenges to its objectivity; it also confirms that it is independent within the meaning of all regulatory and professional requirements and that the objectivity of the audit team is not impaired. Each of the Directors at the date of the approval of this report confirms that: (i) so far as the Directors are aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the Company’s auditors are unaware; and 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 29 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Directors’ Report (continued) 30 (ii) the Directors have taken all steps that they ought to have taken as Directors to make themselves aware of any relevant information and to establish that the Company’s auditors are aware of that information. This confirmation is given and should be interpreted in accordance with the provisions of Section 418 of the Companies Act 2006. Annual General Meeting (“AGM”) The AGM will be held at 11am on 10 December 2025 at the offices of Stephenson Harwood LLP, 1 Finsbury Circus, London EC2M7SH and shareholders are warmly invited to attend. The Investment Adviser will make an online presentation for the year under review. Resolutions relating to the following items of special business will be proposed at the forthcoming AGM: Resolution 3 Directors’ Remuneration Policy Directors’ Remuneration Policy (the ‘Policy’) is put before Shareholders for approval every three years and was last approved at the AGM on 8 December 2022. The Policy will be put before Shareholders for approval at the AGM on 10 December 2025. The policy is that the remuneration of Directors: be fair and reasonable in relation to that of other investment trusts and to the time commitment and responsibilities undertaken; be reviewed relative to movements in the Retail Price Index; be sufficient to retain and motivate appointees, as well as ensure that candidates of a high calibre are recruited to the Board but not be more than necessary for the purpose; and take into consideration any committee memberships and chairmanship duties. Fees for the Directors are determined by the Board within the limits stated in the Company’s Articles of Association (“Articles”). The maximum currently is £300,000 in aggregate per annum. Directors do not have service contracts. Directors are appointed under letters of appointment, copies of which are available for inspection at the registered office of the Company. Directors are entitled to be reimbursed for any reasonable expenses properly incurred by them in the performance of their duties. Directors are not eligible for bonuses, pension benefits, share options or other incentives or benefits. There are no agreements between the Company and its Directors concerning compensation for loss of office. Notwithstanding the above, the Company’s Articles also provide that, additional discretionary payments can be made for services which, in the opinion of the Directors, are outside the scope of the ordinary duties of a director. The level of Directors’ remuneration is reviewed annually, although such review will not automatically result in any changes. This Directors’ Remuneration Policy will apply to any new directors, who will be paid the appropriate fee based on the Directors’ fees level in place at the date of appointment. The Board will consider, where raised, Shareholders’ views on Directors’ remuneration. The Board may amend the level of remuneration paid to Directors within the parameters of the Directors’ Remuneration Policy. This Directors’ Remuneration Policy is the same as that currently followed by the Board as disclosed in last year’s Directors’ Remuneration Report. The Company has no employees and consequently has no policy on the remuneration of employees. Resolution 11 To approve an amendment in the Company’s Investment Policy As stated in the Chairman’s Statement, the investable opportunities presenting themselves to our investment management teams continue to grow as India’s economy develops and these new enterprises emerge. To fully capitalise on these opportunities, the Board is seeking to approve an increase in the Company’s Investment Policy limit from 12% to 15% to invest in gross assets (calculated at the time of investment) in unquoted companies with a Significant Presence in India. Your Board is wholly supportive of the Investment Manager’s proprietary method of approaching investment decisions, of adhering to best-practice corporate governance standards and of finding early access to tomorrow’s success stories and firmly believes that allowing the investment teams to have adequate flexibility is likely to yield the best return for shareholders over the longer term. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 30 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 31 Resolutions 12 and 13 Authority to issue shares and to disapply pre-emption rights The Board is seeking authority to allot up to a maximum of 34,298,378 Ordinary Shares (representing approximately 20% of the shares in issue at the date of this document) and to dis-apply pre-emption rights when allotting those Ordinary Shares at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting. Authority granted under this resolution will expire at the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting to be held in 2025 unless renewed prior to this date via a General Meeting. The full text of resolutions 12 and 13 is set out in the Notice of Meeting on pages 83 to 88. The authority granted by Shareholders to issue shares will provide flexibility to grow the Company and spread its fixed costs. Shares will only be issued at a premium to the Net Asset Value (cumincome) after the costs of issue. Share issues are at the discretion of the Board. Resolution 14 Renewal of authority to purchase own shares The Directors recognise the importance to investors of ensuring that the Company’s share price is as close to its underlying NAV as possible. Accordingly, the Directors monitor the share price closely and will consider share repurchases in the market if the discount widens significantly, or the issue of shares to the market to meet demand to the extent that the Company’s shares are trading at a premium. For the year under review, the Company’s Ordinary Shares have traded at an average premium to NAV of 1.8% and were trading at a discount of 3.8% on a cum-income basis at 14 October 2024, the latest practicable date prior to the issue of this report. The Companies Act 2006 permits companies to hold shares acquired by way of market purchase as treasury shares, rather than having to cancel them. This provides the Company with the ability to re-issue Ordinary Shares quickly and cost effectively, thereby improving liquidity and providing the Company with additional flexibility in the management of its capital base. No Ordinary Shares will be sold from treasury at a price less than the (cum income) Net Asset Value per existing Ordinary Share at the time of their sale unless they are first offered pro rata to existing Shareholders. At the year end the Company did not hold any shares in treasury. The Authority to make market purchases will expire at the conclusion of the Company’s AGM in 2025. The Directors recommend that a new authority to purchase up to 25,706,634 Ordinary Shares (subject to the condition that not more than 14.99% of the Ordinary Shares in issue, excluding treasury Shares, at the date of this notice of AGM are purchased) be granted and a resolution to that effect will be put to the AGM. Any Ordinary Shares purchased will either be cancelled or, if the Directors so determine, held in treasury. The Directors consider that the renewing of the authority is in the interests of Shareholders as a whole, as the repurchase of shares at a discount to the underlying NAV enhances the NAV of the remaining shares. Resolution 12 will give the Company authority to buy-back its own issued Ordinary Shares in the market as permitted by the Companies Act 2006. The authority also sets the minimum and maximum prices which will be paid on any buy-back of shares. Since the Company’s inception in July 2018 to 30 June 2025, the NAV has increased by 184.6% and the Company’s share price has increased by 181.5%, both comfortably ahead of the benchmark index which grew by 106.8% (insterling terms). The Company’s share price stood at 281.5p at the year end, a 0.9% premium to NAV. Therefore, in the event of the Company’s shares trading at a discount, it is considered unlikely that performance alone would have been the main contributor. The Board may require the authority to purchase shares in the event that the Company’s discount becomes excessive in circumstances where they may have exhausted all other means to narrow the Company’s discount, or where they require the power to buy back shares in periods of market volatility beyond their (or the Investment Manager’s) control to protect the long-term interests of the Company’s Shareholders. Further to the above, the Company’s Ongoing Charges ratio of 0.2%, which reflects expenses which are likely to recur in the foreseeable future, whether charged to capital or revenue, and which relate to the operation of the Company is below average amongst investment trusts and is not believed by the Board to have had influence when the Company’s share price has traded at a small discount to Net Asset Value. The Board reviews the ongoing charges and monitors the expenses incurred by the Company. During the year ended 30 June 2025, the Company did not utilise its authority to purchase its own shares. The full text of resolution 12 is set out in the Notice of Meeting on pages 83 to 88. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 31 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Directors’ Report (continued) 32 Resolution 15 Notice of General Meetings Resolution 13 in the notice to the AGM is required to reflect the requirements of the Shareholder Rights Directive. The Company is currently able to call General Meetings, other than an AGM, on 14 clear days’ notice and would like to preserve this ability. In order to be able to do so, Shareholders must have approved the calling of meetings on 14 clear days’ notice. Resolution 15 seeks such approval. The approval would be effective until the Company’s next AGM, when it is intended that a similar resolution will be proposed. The Company will ensure that it offers the facility for Shareholders to vote by electronic means, and that this facility is accessible to all Shareholders, if it is to call general meetings on 14 days’ notice. Short notice will only be used by the Board under appropriate circumstances. Shareholders are strongly encouraged to submit proxy votes online by visiting www.investorcentre.co.uk/eproxy. There is a straightforward registration process and a number of our shareholders are using the site already. All you need is your name, address and investor code, which can be found on your share certificate. If you are having trouble locating your share certificate or investor code, please call the shareholder helpline on 0370 703 6077(or from overseas +44 (0)370 703 6077). Any shareholder who is unwilling or unable to vote digitally can complete a paper proxy card enclosed. Shareholders that hold their shares through an investment platform provider or nominee are encouraged to contact their investment platform provider or nominee as soon as possible, and are encouraged to vote in favour for each of the Resolutions to be lodged on their behalf. The Association of Investment Companies’ guidance on how to vote through investment platforms can be found on its website (https://www.theaic.co.uk/how-to-vote-your- shares). The directors believe that the resolutions to be proposed at the AGM are in the best interests of the Company and its shareholders as a whole, and recommend that shareholders vote in favour of the resolutions. The directors intend to vote their own shareholdings in favour. By order of the Board NSM Funds (UK) Limited Company Secretary 8 October 2025 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 32 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Corporate Governance 33 Introduction The Board has considered the Principles and Provisions of the AIC Code of Corporate Governance 2019 (the “AIC Code”). The AIC Code addresses the Principles and Provisions set out in the UKCorporate Governance Code 2018 (the “UK Code”), as well as setting out additional Provisions on issues that are of specific relevance to the Company. The Board is currently reviewing the impact on the Company of the UK Corporate Governance Code 2024, published in January 2024, applicable to financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2025, other than Provision29 which will apply to financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2026. The Board considers that reporting against the Principles and Provisions of the AIC Code, which has been endorsed by the Financial Reporting Council, provides more relevant information to Shareholders. The Company has complied with the Principles and Provisions of the AIC Code. The AIC Code is available on the AIC website (www.theaic.co.uk). It includes an explanation of how the AIC Code adapts the Principles and Provisions set out in the UKCode to make them relevant for investment companies. The Company has complied with the recommendations of the AICCode and the relevant provisions of the UKCode, except as set out below. The UK Code includes provisions relating to: • the role of the chief executive; • the establishment of a remuneration committee; • the need for an internal audit function; and • executive directors’ remuneration. The Board considers that these provisions are not relevant to the position of the Company, being an externally managed investment company with an independent board and no employees. The Audit Committee has considered the need for an internal audit function and considers that this is not appropriate given the nature and circumstances of the Company as an externally managed investment company with external service providers. The Audit Committee keeps the needs for an internal audit function under periodic review. The Company has therefore not reported further in respect of these provisions. The Board Composition At the date of this report, the Board consists of four non-executive directors including the Chairman. Mr Watkins and Mr Skinner were appointed on 11 May 2018. Dr Booth and Ms Dhut were appointed on 7 June 2018. Rita Dhut was appointed Senior Independent Director of the Company with effect from 1 October 2022. The Board believes that during the year ended 30 June 2025 its composition was appropriate for an investment company of the Company’s nature and size. All of the Directors are independent of the Investment Manager and are able to allocate sufficient time to the Company to discharge their responsibilities effectively. All Board members actively participate in Board meetings, provide constructive challenge, specialist advice and strategic guidance. The Directors have a broad range of relevant experience to meet the Company’s requirements and their biographies are given overleaf. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 33 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Corporate Governance (continued) 34 Andrew Watkins (non-executive Chairman) Andrew Watkins has spent his career in the investment companies’ sector in senior sales and client relations positions with Robert Fleming, Jupiter and Invesco Perpetual, retiring from full-time employment in June 2017. He is a current Chairman of CT UKHigh Income Trust plc and non-executive director of Chelverton UK Dividend Trust plc, Baillie Gifford European Growth Trust plc and Consistent Unit Trust Management Ltd. Jamie Skinner (Chair of the Audit Committee) Jamie Skinner is a qualified accountant and a fellow of the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment. He joined Cazenove & Co in 1989 as a corporate finance executive working principally on investment companies and also other sector IPO activity. In 1999 he joined Martin Currie Investment Management Limited as a Director and in 2014 was appointed Head of Client Services. He served as President and CEO of The China Fund, Inc. until 2012, President and CEO of The Taiwan Fund, Inc. until 2014 and President of the Martin Currie Business Trust until 2015. He was appointed to the board of Martin Currie, Inc. in March 2013 and to the board of the Martin Currie Japan Absolute Return Fund in January 2016 and retired from these roles on 17 May 2018 and 10 May 2018 respectively. He was previously a non-executive director of Ediston Property Investment Company plc and is currently chairman of both Asian Opportunities Absolute Return Fund Limited and Chairman of Baillie Gifford Shin Nippon plc. Dr Jerome Booth (Chair of the Nomination Committee) Dr Jerome Booth is a published economist and leading expert on emerging markets. He has a broad range of board and senior level experiences in higher education, finance (banking, asset management and insurance), media (press and publishing), telecoms, and the arts (music, museums and film). Jerome has aDoctorate in Economics from the University of Oxford and was a Lecturer in Economics at Christ Church. In 2013, he retired from Ashmore Group, a world leading emerging markets asset management group that he helped establish in 1999 in a management buyout from ANZ Bank. Prior to ANZ Bank, he worked in the Strategic Planning unit of the Inter-American Development Bank from 1991 to 1994 in Washington, D.C. Jerome is Chairman of The Global Warming Policy Foundation. He previously served as Chairman of the Governing Board of Anglia Ruskin University. He has also been Chairman of: the Britten Sinfonia; The UKCF (the national body of Community Foundations); and the Fitzwilliam Museum Development Trust. He was also a board member of the Royal Philharmonic Society. Rita Dhut (Chair of the Management Engagement Committee and Senior Independent Director) Rita Dhut has over 30 years of varied investment experience having gained industry recognition and multiple awards during her Fund Management career at organisations such as M&G Plc and Aviva Investors where she was appointed Head of UK & European Equity for value based investment responsible for over £6billion of equity funds. She is currently a Non-Executive Director of UKRI, Integrafin Plc and Chair of JP Morgan European Growth and Income Plc. Rita is also an active investor in, and adviser to, early stage companies. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 34 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 35 The Directors have appointment letters which do not provide for any specific term. Copies of the Directors’ appointment letters are available on request from the Company Secretary. Upon joining the Board, any new Director receives an induction and further relevant training is available to Directors on an ongoing basis. When considering new appointments to the Board the Directors will consider other demands on the Director’s time and any significant time commitments should be disclosed prior to appointment. Additional external appointments will not be undertaken without prior Board approval. Independent advice A procedure has been adopted for Directors, in the furtherance of their duties, to take independent professional advice at the expense of the Company. Conflicts of interest In accordance with the Companies Act 2006, the Company has put in place procedures to deal with conflicts of interest, which have operated effectively. The Directors have declared any conflicts or potential conflicts of interest to the Board, which has the authority to approve such occurrences. The Company Secretary maintains the Register of Directors’ Conflicts of Interests which is reviewed at each quarterly board meeting and when changes are notified. The Directors advise the Company Secretary and the Board as soon as they become aware of any conflicts of interest. Directors who have conflicts of interest do not take part in discussions which relate to any of their conflicts. It is the responsibility of each individual Director to avoid an unauthorised conflict arising. Directors must request authorisation from the Board as soon as they become aware of the possibility that a conflict may arise. The Board is responsible for considering Directors’ requests for authorisation of conflicts and for deciding whether or not the relevant conflict should be authorised. When the Board is deciding whether to authorise a conflict or potential conflict, only Directors who have no interest in the matter being considered are able to participate in the relevant decision, and in taking the decision the Directors must act in a way they consider, in good faith, will be most likely to promote the Company’s success. The Board are able to impose limits or conditions when giving authorisation if they think this is appropriate in the circumstances. The Directors must also comply with the statutory rules requiring company directors to declare any interest in an actual or proposed transaction or arrangement with the Company. Board committees The Board decides upon the membership and chairmanship of its committees. Audit Committee In accordance with the Companies Act 2006, the Company has put in place procedures to deal with conflicts of interest, which have operated effectively. The Board is aware of the other commitments of its Directors and is satisfied that these duties do not conflict with their duties as Directors of the Company. Any changes to these commitments are reported to the Board. MrSkinner is the Chair of the Audit Committee. Management Engagement Committee All of the Directors are members of this committee. The Management Engagement Committee meets at least once a year or more often if required. Its principal duties include consideration of the terms of appointment of the Investment Manager and the Company’s other service providers, and it will annually review those appointments and the terms of the Investment Management Agreement. Ms Dhut is the Chair of the Management Engagement Committee. Nomination Committee The Board as a whole fulfils the function of the Nomination Committee. The Nomination Committee meets at least once a year or more often if required. Its principal duties include identifying and nominating to the Board new Directors and undertaking an annual performance evaluation of the Board, led by the Committee Chairman. Dr Booth is the Chair of the Nomination committee. Each Committee has adopted formal terms of reference, which are reviewed at least annually, and copies of these are available on the Company’s website or on request from the Company Secretary. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 35 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Corporate Governance (continued) 36 Quarterly Audit Nomination Board Committee Committee Management Meetings Committee Number of meetings held 4 2 1 1 Andrew Watkins 4 2 1 1 Jamie Skinner 4 2 1 1 Dr Jerome Booth 4 2 1 1 Rita Dhut 4 2 1 1 Diversity The Board supports the principle of boardroom diversity, of which gender and ethnicity are two important aspects. The Board’s aim is to have a broad range of approaches, backgrounds, skills, knowledge and experience represented and to make appointments on merit against objective criteria, including diversity in its broadest sense. The Board believes that this will promote the long-term sustainable success of the Company and generate value for all shareholders by ensuring there is cognitive diversity among the Directors and the challenge needed to support good decision making. To this end, achieving a diversity of perspectives and backgrounds on the Board will be a key consideration in any future Director search process. The Board encourages any recruitment agencies it engages to find a diverse range of candidates that meet the criteria agreed for each appointment and, from the shortlist, aims to ensure that a diverse range of candidates is brought forward for interview. The Board gives due regard to the diversity targets in the FCA UKListing Rules and does not discriminate unfairly on the grounds of gender, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, disability or socio-economic background when considering the appointment of new directors. Candidates’ educational and professional backgrounds, their cognitive and personal strengths, are considered against the specification prepared for each appointment. Implementation of the Board’s Diversity Policy The Board reports against the targets set out in the FCA’s UKLR 6.6.6R(9)(a). These require that at least 40% of individuals on the board are women; at least one individual on the board is from a minority ethnic background; and at least one of the senior board positions of Chair, SID, CEO and CFO is held by a woman. At 30 June 2025, and at the date this Annual Report was signed, the Board comprised four non-executive Directors. Two of the three targets are met because one Director is ethnically diverse and at least one of the senior Board positions is held by a woman. The Board did not meet the target on gender diversity of at least 40% of women on the board. However, the Board is committed to meeting this target and will consider gender diversity when future appointments are made as part of its recruitment criteria. The following information has been provided by each Director. As the Company has no employees, no information is included for executive management. The Board has resolved that the Company’s year-end date be the most appropriate date for disclosure purposes. There have been no changes since 30 June 2025. Number of Percentage Number of Board of the senior members Board positions on the Board Men 3 75% 2 Women 1 25% 1 Number of Percentage Number of Board of the senior members Board positions on the Board White British 3 75% 2 or Other White (including minority-white groups) Asian/Asian British 1 25% 1 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 36 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 37 Tenure Policy Each Director is subject to annual re-election by Shareholders. Although this is not required by the Company’s Articles of Association, it is good governance practice. The Board recommends all of the Directors for re-election at the upcoming AGM in December 2025. The Company has no fixed policy regarding tenure of directorships. The Board recognises the benefits to the Company of having longer serving Directors together with progressive refreshment of the Board in line with corporate governance best practice. The Board are mindful that the entire Board will reach their ninth anniversary simultaneously during the summer of 2027. In order to ensure continuity, the Board has adopted a succession plan that allows for a gradual refreshment. However, the Board may decide to recommend a director with more than nine years’ service for re- election should the need arise. Board Evaluation During the year, the Board conducted an external evaluation using the services of Board Forms, an external evaluation consultancy which is independent of the Company. The evaluation was based upon completed questionnaires covering the Board and its Committees, individual Directors and the Chairman. The responses, including the appraisal of the Chairman, were discussed by the Nomination Committee. The conclusion of the performance evaluations were positive and demonstrated that the Board and its Committees were operating effectively. The Nomination Committee reported to the Board on each Director’s performance, and concluded that their performance continues to be effective, they remain committed to the Company and have sufficient time to fulfill their duties. Internal control The AIC Code requires the Board to review the effectiveness of the Company’s system of internal controls. The Board recognises its ultimate responsibility for the Company’s system of internal controls and for monitoring its effectiveness. The system of internal controls is designed to manage rather than eliminate the risk of failure to achieve business objectives and it can provide only reasonable assurance against material misstatement or loss. The Board has undertaken a review of the aspects covered by the guidance and has identified risk management controls in the key areas of business objectives, accounting, compliance, operations and secretarial as being matters of particular importance upon which it requires reports from the relevant key service providers. The Board believes that the existing arrangements, set out below, represent an appropriate framework to meet the internal control requirements. By following these procedures, the Directors have kept under review the effectiveness of the internal control system throughout the year and up to the date of this report. Financial aspects of internal control These are detailed in the Audit Committee Report on page43. Other aspects of internal control The Board holds at least four regular meetings each year, plus additional meetings as required. Between these meetings there is regular contact with the Investment Adviser, the Company Secretary, and the Administrator. The Administrator, NSM Funds (UK) Limited, reports separately in writing to the Board concerning risks and internal control matters within its purview, including internal financial control procedures and company secretarial matters. As stated earlier in the Director’s Report, Apex Listed Companies Services (UK) Limited provided this service until 31 December 2024. Additional ad hoc reports are received as required and Directors have access at all times to the advice and services of the Company Secretary, which is responsible to the Board for ensuring that Board procedures are followed, and that applicable rules and regulations are complied with. Engagement with the Investment Manager and the Administrator enabled the Board to monitor the Company’s progress towards its objectives and encompass an analysis of the risks involved. The effectiveness of the Company’s risk management and internal control systems is monitored regularly and a formal review, utilising a detailed risk assessment programme, takes place at least annually. This includes a review of the internal controls reports of the Administrator, Investment Manager, Registrar and Custodian. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 37 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Corporate Governance (continued) 38 Principal and emerging risks The Directors confirm that they have carried out a robust assessment of the principal and emerging risks facing the Company, including those that would threaten its business model, future performance, solvency or liquidity. The principal and emerging risks and how they are being managed are set out in the Strategic Report on pages 13 to 15. Shareholder relations The Board encourages all Shareholders to attend the AGM and seeks to provide twenty one clear days’ notice of that meeting. The Notice of AGM sets out the business of the AGM and any item not of an entirely routine nature is explained in the Directors’ Report. Separate resolutions are proposed for each substantive issue. The Investment Manager has a regular programme of meetings with Shareholders and reports back to the Board on its findings. Additionally, the Company’s Broker regularly provides Shareholder feedback to the Board. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 38 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Directors’ Remuneration Report 39 Introduction The Board is pleased to present the Remuneration Report for the year ended 30 June 2025 which has been prepared in accordance with sections 420-422 of the Companies Act 2006. The law requires the Company’s auditor to audit certain sections of the Remuneration Report; where this is the case the relevant section has been indicated as such. Given the size of the Board, being four members in number, the Board is of the view that a separate Remuneration Committee is not required to be established. The Nomination Committee is responsible, inter alia, for reviewing the remuneration payable to the Directors considering the relevant circumstances of the Company. The remuneration policy must be put forward for shareholder approval at a maximum interval of three years. It was last approved by shareholders at the AGM held on 10 December 2022. Accordingly, the remuneration policy will continue in force until the forthcoming AGM to be held 10 December 2025. The remuneration policy sets out the principles the Company follows in remunerating Directors and the result of the shareholder vote on the policy is binding on the Company. The Board will take account of any views expressed by shareholders in formulating this policy. In the event of any proposed material variation to the policy, shareholder approval will be sought for the proposed new policy prior to its implementation. All the Directors are non-executive directors and the Company has no other employees. Remuneration Policy The remuneration policy is that the remuneration of Directors: be fair and reasonable in relation to that of other investment trusts and to the time commitment and responsibilities undertaken; be reviewed relative to movements in the Retail Price Index; be sufficient to retain and motivate appointees, as well as ensure that candidates of a high calibre are recruited to the Board but not be more than necessary for the purpose; and take into consideration any committee memberships and chairmanship duties. Fees for the Directors are determined by the Board within the limits stated in the Company’s Articles of Association (“Articles”). The maximum currently is £300,000 in aggregate per annum. Directors do not have service contracts. Directors are appointed under letters of appointment, copies of which are available for inspection at the registered office of the Company. Directors are entitled to be reimbursed for any reasonable expenses properly incurred by them in the performance of their duties. Directors are not eligible for bonuses, pension benefits, share options or other incentives or benefits. There are no agreements between the Company and its Directors concerning compensation for loss of office. Notwithstanding the above, the Company’s Articles also provide that, additional discretionary payments can be made for services which, in the opinion of the Directors, are outside the scope of the ordinary duties of a director. The level of Directors’ remuneration is reviewed annually, although such review will not automatically result in any changes. This Directors’ remuneration policy will apply to any new directors, who will be paid the appropriate fee based on the Directors’ fees level in place at the date of appointment. The Board will consider, where raised, Shareholders’ views on Directors’ remuneration. The Board may amend the level of remuneration paid to Directors within the parameters of the Directors’ remuneration policy. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 39 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Directors’ Remuneration Report (continued) 40 The components of the remuneration package for Directors, which are contained in the remuneration policy are as detailed below. Current and future policy Component Director Purpose of reward Operation Annual fee 1,2 Chairman of the Board For services as Chairman of a plc Determined by the Board Annual fee 1,2 Other Directors For services as non-executive Directors Determined by the Board of a plc Additional fee 1,2 Chairman of the Audit For additional responsibility and time Determined by the Board Committee commitment Expenses All Directors Reimbursement of expenses incurred in Submission of appropriate the performance of duties supporting documentation 1 Payment in shares - The Board has determined that with effect from 24 June 2021, Directors’ may elect to receive their Directors’ fee in cash, rather than in shares. The Directors (the Chairman from 1 July 2021, Ms Dhut from 1 July 2022 and the remainder of the Board from 1 July 2024) have so elected to receive their Directors’ fees in cash. Any Ordinary Shares previously acquired by the Directors in payment of their fees shall be subject to the terms of the Directors’ Lock-in Deed and not accounted for under share-based payments. 2 Lock-in Deed - Each Board member is subject to a Deed between themselves, the Company and Peel Hunt (the “Broker”) dated 19 June 2018. The Directors have agreed that they will not sell, grant options over or otherwise dispose of any interest in any Ordinary Shares acquired by them in satisfaction of their entitlement to Directors’ fees (save in certain circumstances, including: (i) in acceptance of a general offer made for the entire issued share capital of the Company; or (ii) pursuant to an intervening court order; or (iii) following termination of their appointment as a non-executive Director of the Company) prior to the first anniversary of the date of acquisition of the relevant Ordinary Shares. The Directors’ Lock-in Deed is governed by the laws of England and Wales. Remuneration Implementation Report Each Director’s appointment is governed by written terms which are available for inspection at the Company’s registered office. They are also available at the AGM. Details of the Company’s policy on Directors’ tenure may be found on page 37. Subject to the provision of the Lock-in-Deed, there are no restrictions on transfers of the Company’s shares held by the Directors, or any special rights attached to such shares. The Company has agreed to indemnify, defend and hold harmless its Directors from and against all liabilities, obligations, losses, damages, penalties, actions, judgements, suits, costs, legal costs, reasonable expenses or disbursements (other than those resulting from fraud or negligence). Information on Directors’ costs is disclosed in note 8 of these Financial Statements. Voting at last Annual General Meeting The resolution to approve the Remuneration Policy contained in the Annual Report for the year ended 30June 2022 was passed at the AGM held on 8December 2022 with 99.91% of the shares voted being in favour of the resolution. The resolution to approve the Director’s Remuneration Report contained in the Annual Report for the year ended 30 June 2024 was put forward to Shareholders at the AGM held on 10 December 2024. The resolution was also passed with 99.8% of the shares voted being in favour of the resolution, 0.02% against and 137,704 votes were withheld. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 40 -50 0 50 100 150 200 250 NAV Share price Index Jul-18 Dec-18 Jun-19 Nov-19 May-20 Oct-20 Apr-21 Oct-21 Mar-22 Sep-22 Feb-23 Aug-23 Jan-24 Jul-24 Dec-24 Jun-25 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 41 Directors’ Fees The Directors who served during the year received the following remuneration for qualifying services. In accordance with the Shareholder Rights Directive, the Board confirms there were no variable pay awards made to the Directors and there were no deferral periods. Director remuneration is reviewed on an annual basis by the Nomination Committee. Following due consideration of peers within the sector, and analysis of current market rates of Directors’ fees for investment trust companies, the Board decided to keep the fees unchanged for the year beginning 1 July 2025. The table below sets out the annual percentage change in Directors’ fees for the past five years. Audited 2025 2024 % change % change % change % change % change in fees in fees in fees in fees in fees Taxable Taxable 30 June 30 June 30 June 30 June 30 June Fees Benefits Total Fees Benefits Total 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 Director £ £ £ £ £ £ to 2025 to 2024 to 2023 to 2022 to 2021 Andrew Watkins 48,000 0.00 48,000 40,000 0.00 40,000 20.00 0.00 0.00 14.29 0.00 Jamie Skinner 1 40,000 1,954.25 41,954.25 32,500 0.00 32,500 29.09 0.00 0.00 18.18 0.00 Dr Jerome Booth 32,000 0.00 32,000 27,500 0.00 27,500 16.36 0.00 0.00 10.00 0.00 Rita Dhut 32,000 0.00 32,000 27,500 0.00 27,500 16.36 0.00 0.00 10.00 0.00 Total 152,000 1,954.25 153,954.25 127,500 0.00 127,500 1 The percentage change for Jamie Skinner is comprised of 23.08% increase in basic fees and 100% increase for taxable benefits incurred in the current year. Performance The chart below shows the performance of the Company’s net asset value and share price (total return) by comparison to the MSCI India IMI (total return in sterling terms) for the period since the Company was listed assuming £100 was invested at the point the Company was listed. The Company does not have a specific benchmark but has deemed the MSCI India IMI (in sterling terms) to be the most appropriate comparator for its performance. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 41 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Directors’ Remuneration Report (continued) 42 Relative importance of spend on pay The following table sets out the total level of Directors’ remuneration compared to income and capital gains, the distributions to Shareholders by way of dividends, and the performance fees and operating expenses incurred by the Company for the year ended 30 June 2025, together with the prior year comparative. Year ended Year ended 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 £ £ Income 3,011,000 2,196,000 Net investment gains 24,995,000 111,594,000 Spend on Directors’ fees 152,000 127,500 Performance fees expense 1 15,954,000 2,301,000 Operating expenses 1,007,000 1,533,000 Dividends paid to Shareholders nil nil 1 The performance fees are accrued but not paid and will adjust at the end of each period. The disclosure of the information in the table above is required under The Large and Medium-sized Companies and Groups (Accounts and Reports) (Amendment) Regulations 2013 with the exception of performance fees and operating expenses which have been included to show the total expenses of the Company. Directors’ shareholdings At 30 June 2025 the Directors had the following holdings in the Company. All holdings were beneficially owned. Audited Ordinary Ordinary Shares Shares as at as at 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 Andrew Watkins 94,425 94,425 Jamie Skinner 100,933 100,933 Rita Dhut 81,733 81,733 Dr Jerome Booth 85,522 85,522 There have been no changes to any of Directors’ shareholdings in the period from 1 July 2025 to the date of this report. Statement On behalf of the Board and in accordance with Part 2 of Schedule 8 of the Large and Medium-sized Companies and Groups (Accounts and Reports) (Amendment) Regulations 2013, I confirm that the above Remuneration Policy and Remuneration Implementation Report summarises, as applicable, for the year ended 30 June 2025: (a) the major decisions on Directors’ remuneration; (b) any substantial changes relating to Directors’ remuneration made during the year; and (c) the context in which the changes occurred and decisions have been taken. Andrew Watkins Chairman of the Board 8 October 2025 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 42 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Audit Committee Report 43 Role and responsibilities of the Audit Committee The AIC Code of Corporate Governance (the “AIC Code”) recommends that Boards should establish an audit committee consisting of at least three, or in the case of smaller companies, two independent non-executive Directors. The Board is required to satisfy itself that the audit committee has recent and relevant financial experience. The main role and responsibilities of the audit committee should be set out in written terms of reference covering certain matters described in the Code. The Company complies with the AIC Code. The Committee has formal written terms of reference which clearly set out its main role and responsibilities including certain matters provided for in the Code. Copies of the terms of reference are available on the Company’s website or on request from the Company Secretary. The principal responsibilities of the Committee are: • to monitor the integrity of the financial statements of the Company and any formal announcements relating to the Company’s financial performance; • to review the Company’s internal financial controls and the internal control and risk management systems of the Company and its third-party service providers; • to make recommendations to the Board in relation to the appointment of the external Auditor and their remuneration; • to review and monitor the external Auditor’s independence and objectivity and the effectiveness of the audit process; and • to develop and implement policy on the engagement of the external Auditor to supply non-audit services, taking into account relevant guidance regarding the provision of non-audit services by the external audit firm. The Audit Committee meets formally at least twice a year for the purpose, amongst other things, of considering the appointment, independence and objectivity, and remuneration of the Auditor and to review the annual accounts and half-yearly financial report. The Audit Committee also reviews the Company’s internal financial controls and its internal control and risk management systems. Where non-audit services are provided by the auditor, full consideration of the financial and other implications on the independence of the auditor arising from any such engagement are considered before proceeding. These are non-recurring services, and the work was performed by a team independent of the audit team and the audit team place no reliance on the output of the services provided. Composition of the Committee All of the Directors of the Company are members of the Committee which is chaired by Mr Skinner. All members of the Committee have recent and relevant financial experience. The Chairman of the Company is a member of the Committee. The Board and the Committee believe that it is appropriate for the Chairman of the Board to remain a member of the Committee because he has recent and relevant financial experience and was independent on his appointment as Chairman and remains so. Activities of the Committee There were two Audit Committee meetings held during the year ended 30 June 2025 at which all Committee members were in attendance. The Committee, amongst other things, considered the appointment, independence and objectivity, and remuneration of the external Auditor and reviewed the annual accounts and half-yearly financial report. The Committee also reviewed the Company’s internal financial controls and its internal control and risk management systems. Financial aspects of internal control The Directors are responsible for the internal financial control systems of the Company and for reviewing its effectiveness. The aim of the internal financial control system is to ensure the maintenance of proper accounting records, the reliability of the financial information upon which business decisions are made and which is used for publication and that the assets of the Company are safeguarded. As stated above, the Board has contractually delegated to external agencies the services the Company requires, but they are fully informed of the internal control framework established by each relevant service provider who have provided reasonable assurance on the effectiveness of internal financial controls. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 43 Where controls reports were not coterminous with the Company’s year-end bridging letters were obtained. The Audit Committee also received papers in relation to the controls at the Custodian, Investment Manager and Investment Adviser. The key procedures include monthly production of management accounts and NAV calculations, monitoring of performance at regular Board meetings, supervision by Directors of the valuation of securities, segregation of the administrative function from that of securities and cash custody and of both from investment management, maintenance of appropriate insurance and adherence to physical and computer security procedures. The Audit Committee received and reviewed control reports from the Company’s Administrator and Registrar which contain reporting accountant’s reports. The Statement of Directors’ Responsibilities in respect of the accounts is on page 46 and a Statement of Going Concern is on page 29. The Independent Auditor’s Report is on pages 47 to56. Financial statements and significant accounting matters The Audit Committee reviewed the financial statements and considered the following significant accounting issues in relation to the Company’s financial statements for the year to 30 June 2025: Valuation and existence of investments The Company holds the majority of its assets in quoted investments. The existence and valuation of these investments is the most material matter in the production of the financial statements. The Audit Committee reviewed the procedures in place for ensuring accurate valuation and existence of investments and discussed the valuation of the Company’s investments at the year end with the Investment Manager and reviewed their existence with the Administrator and other service providers. Investments are valued using independent pricing sources by the Administrators and the holding quantities at the year end were agreed to the Company’s custodian’s records. The Company also holds unquoted investments in the portfolio. The Investment Manager provided a valuation recommendation for the unquoted investments held at the year end which was discussed and approved by the Directors. The Investment Managers’ valuation approach for investments in unlisted companies is described in Note 3a. Recognition of income Income may not be accrued in the correct period and/or incorrectly allocated to revenue or capital. The Audit Committee reviewed the Administrator’s procedures for recognition of income and reviewed the treatment of any special dividend receivable in the period under review. Calculation of performance fees Incorrect amounts may be paid to the Investment Manager and recognised in the accounts if the fees are not calculated correctly. Performance fee calculations are circulated to the Directors prior to payment. The Audit Committee reviewed the procedures in place for the calculation of performance fees. Tax status and Indian capital gains provision The Company may suffer tax on gains on the realisation of investments if investment trust status is not maintained. The Audit Committee reviewed the compliance of the Company during the year with the eligibility conditions and ongoing requirements in order for investment trust status to be maintained. The Indian capital gains tax provision represents an estimate of the amount of tax payable by the Company. Tax amounts payable may differ from this provision depending on when the Company disposes of investments. The Audit Committee reviewed the procedures in place for the calculation of Indian capital gains tax. The daily NAV takes into account any provisional Indian capital gains tax assessment. Going concern The Audit Committee reviewed the Company’s financial resources and concluded that it is appropriate for the Company’s financial statements to be prepared on a going concern basis as described in the Directors’ Report on page 29. Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Audit Committee Report (continued) 44 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 44 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 45 Conclusion with respect to the annual report and financial statements The Audit Committee has concluded that the annual report for the year to 30 June 2025, taken as a whole, is fair, balanced and understandable and provides the information necessary for Shareholders to assess the Company’s business model, strategy and performance. The Audit Committee has reported its conclusions to the Board of Directors. The Audit Committee reached this conclusion through a process of review of the documents and enquiries to the various parties involved in the production of the annual report. Audit tenure Ernst & Young LLP was first appointed as the Company’s Auditor for the period ended 30 June 2019. Mr Mike Gaylor is the current Audit Partner, appointed for and during the year ended 30 June 2023 audit. The appointment of the auditor is reviewed annually by the Committee and the Board and is subject to approval by Shareholders. Ernst & Young LLP has confirmed that it believes it is independent within the meaning of regulatory and professional requirements and that the objectivity of the audit partner and staff is not impaired. Having carried out the review described below, the Committee is satisfied that the Auditor remains independent and effective for the purposes of this year’s audit and, as such, has not considered it necessary to put the audit services contract out to tender. In accordance with FRC guidance in relation to the statutory audits of listed companies, the Company is required to put out to tender within ten years of the initial appointment of Ernst & Young LLP, this will be during the 2028 year end. There are no contractual obligations restricting the Committee’s choice of external Auditor. Effectiveness of external audit The Audit Committee is responsible for reviewing the effectiveness of the external audit process. The Audit Committee received a presentation of the audit plan from the external Auditor prior to the commencement of the audit and a presentation of the results of the audit following completion of the main audit testing. Additionally, the Audit Committee received feedback from the Administrator regarding the effectiveness of the external audit process and the Audit Quality Inspection Report on Ernst & Young LLP issued by the FRC’s Audit Quality Review Team (‘AQRT’). Following the above review, the Audit Committee has agreed that the re-appointment of the external Auditors should be recommended to the Board and the Shareholders of the Company. Provision of non-audit services The Audit Committee has put a policy in place on the supply of any non-audit services provided by the external Auditor. Such services are considered on a case-by-case basis and may only be provided to the Company if the provision of such services is at a reasonable and competitive cost and does not constitute a conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest which would prevent the external Auditor from remaining objective and independent. No non-audit services were provided in the year ending 30 June 2025 (30 June 2024: nil). Internal Audit The Committee has considered the need for an internal audit function and considers that this is not appropriate given the nature and circumstances of the Company. The Committee keeps the need for an internal audit function under periodic review. Jamie Skinner Audit Committee Chairman 8 October 2025 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 45 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Statement of Directors’ Responsibilities 46 The Directors are responsible for preparing the Annual Report and Accounts in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. The Companies Act 2006 (the “company law”) requires the Directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year. Under that law the Directors have elected to prepare the Company financial statements in accordance with UK-adopted international accounting standards. Under company law, the Directors must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Company during and as at the end of the year. In preparing these financial statements, the Directors are required to: • select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently; • make judgements and estimates, which are reasonable and prudent; • present information including accounting policies and additional disclosures as required to ensure the report is presented in a manner that provides relevant, reliable, comparable and understandable information; • state whether applicable UK-adopted international accounting standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and • prepare the financial statements on a going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Company will continue in business. The Directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the Company’s transactions and which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Company and enable them to ensure that the accounts comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. The accounts are published on the Company’s website at https://ashokaindiaequity.com, which is maintained by the Investment Manager. The work carried out by the auditors does not involve consideration of the maintenance and integrity of this website and, accordingly, the auditors accept no responsibility for any changes that have occurred to the accounts since being initially presented on the website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions. Directors’ confirmation statement The Directors each confirm to the best of their knowledge that: (a) the financial statements, prepared in accordance with UK-adopted international accounting standards give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the Company as required by DTR 4.1.12R; and (b) this Annual Report comprising the Strategic Report and Governance Statements includes a fair review of the development and performance of the business and position of the Company, together with a description of the principal and emerging risks that it faces as required by DTR 4.1.8R and DTR 4.1.9R. Having taken advice from the Audit Committee, the Directors consider that the Annual Report and financial statements taken as a whole is fair, balanced and understandable and provides the information necessary for Shareholders to assess the Company’s performance, business model and strategy. For and on behalf of the Board Andrew Watkins Chairman 8 October 2025 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 46 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Independent Auditor’s Report To The Members Of Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust Plc 47 Opinion We have audited the financial statements of Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc (“the Company”) for the year ended 30 June 2025 which comprise the Statement of Comprehensive Income, the Statement of Financial Position, the Statement of Changes in Equity, the Statement of Cash flows and the related notes 1 to 17, including material accounting policy information. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and UK adopted international accounting standards. In our opinion, the financial statements: • give a true and fair view of the Company’s affairs as at 30 June 2025 and of its loss for the year then ended; • have been properly prepared in accordance with UK adopted international accounting standards; and • have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006. Basis for opinion We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. Independence We are independent of the Company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard as applied to listed public interest entities, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. The non-audit services prohibited by the FRC’s Ethical Standard were not provided to the Company and we remain independent of the Company in conducting the audit. Conclusions relating to going concern In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the directors’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate. Our evaluation of the directors’ assessment of the Company’s ability to continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting included: • Confirmation of our understanding of the Company’s going concern assessment process and engaged with the Directors and the Company Secretary to determine if all key factors that we have become aware of during our audit were considered in their assessment. We considered whether the factors taken account of in the Directors’ assessment addressed those matters which we considered important. • Inspection of the Directors’ assessment of going concern, including the revenue forecast and liquidity assessment, for the period to 31 December 2026 which is at least 12months from the date the financial statements were authorised for issue. In preparing the revenue forecast, the Company has concluded that it is able to continue to meet its ongoing costs as they fall due. • Review of the factors and assumptions, including the impact of the current economic environment and other significant events that could give rise to market volatility, as applied to the revenue forecast and the liquidity assessment of investments. We considered the appropriateness of the methods used to calculate the revenue forecast and the liquidity assessment and determined, through testing of the methodology and calculations, that the methods, inputs and assumptions utilised were appropriate to be able to make an assessment for the Company. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 47 • Consideration of the mitigating factors included within the revenue forecasts that are within the control of the Company. We reviewed the Company’s assessment of the liquidity of investments held and evaluated the Company’s ability to sell those investments in order to cover working capital requirements. • Review of the Company’s going concern disclosures included in the annual report in order to assess that the disclosures were consistent with the financial statements and our understanding of the Company and in conformity with the reporting standards. Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period to 31 December 2026. In relation to the Company’s reporting on how they have applied the UK Corporate Governance Code, we have nothing material to add or draw attention to in relation to the directors’ statement in the financial statements about whether the directors considered it appropriate to adopt the going concern basis of accounting. Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the directors with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report. However, because not all future events or conditions can be predicted, this statement is not a guarantee as to the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. Overview of our audit approach Key audit matters • Risk of incomplete or inaccurate revenue recognition, including the classification of special dividends as revenue or capital items in the Statement of Comprehensive Income. • Risk of incorrect valuation or ownership of the investment portfolio and the resulting impact on the Statement of Comprehensive Income. • Risk of incorrect calculation and allocation of the performance fee Materiality • Overall materiality of £4.76m which represents 1% of net assets. An overview of the scope of our audit Tailoring the scope Our assessment of audit risk, our evaluation of materiality and our allocation of performance materiality determine our audit scope for the Company. This enables us to form an opinion on the financial statements. We take into account size, risk profile, the organisation of the Company and effectiveness of controls, the potential impact of climate change and changes in the business environment when assessing the level of work to be performed. All audit work was performed directly by the audit engagement team which included valuations specialists. Climate change Stakeholders are increasingly interested in how climate change will impact the Company. The Company has determined that the most significant risks from climate change on its operations are; the Company could suffer as a result of increased investor demand for products which promote ESG characteristics, additional costs and risk could arise for portfolio companies as a result of climate change and climate change policies, extreme weather conditions could have a negative impact on portfolio companies, and the Company could be exposed to potential reputational damage from non-compliance with regulations or incorrect disclosures. This is explained on pages 13 to 15 in the principal and emerging risks section. Our procedures on these unaudited disclosures therefore consisted solely of considering whether they are materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit or otherwise appear to be materially misstated, in line with our responsibilities on “Other information”. Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Independent Auditor’s Report To The Members Of Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust Plc (continued) 48 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 48 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 49 Our audit effort in considering climate change was focused on the adequacy of the Company’s disclosures in the financial statements as set out in note 2 and concluded that there was no further impact of climate change to be taken into account as the investments are valued at fair value, being primarily quoted prices for investments in active markets at the balance sheet date, and therefore reflect market participant’s view of climate change risk. Unlisted investments, valued by reference to appropriate valuation techniques, similarly reflect market participants’ view of climate change risk. We also challenged the Directors’ considerations of climate change in their assessment of viability and associated disclosures. Key audit matters Key audit matters are those matters that, in our professional judgement, were of most significance in our audit of the financial statements of the current period and include the most significant assessed risks of material misstatement (whether or not due to fraud) that we identified. These matters included those which had the greatest effect on: the overall audit strategy, the allocation of resources in the audit; and directing the efforts of the engagement team. These matters were addressed in the context of our audit of the financial statements as a whole, and in our opinion thereon, and we do not provide a separate opinion on these matters. Risk Our response to the risk Key observations communicated to the Audit Committee The results of our procedures identified no material misstatement in relation to the risk of incomplete or inaccurate revenue recognition, including the classification of special dividends as revenue or capital items in the Statement of Comprehensive Income. We have performed the following procedures: We obtained an understanding of the Manager’s and the Administrator’s processes and controls surrounding revenue recognition by performing walkthrough procedures. For 100% of dividends received and accrued, we recalculated the income by multiplying the investment holdings at the ex-dividend date, traced from the accounting records, by the dividend per share, which was agreed to an independent data vendor. We agreed this sample of income received to bank statements and, where applicable, we also agreed the exchange rates to an external source. To test completeness of recorded income, we verified that expected dividends for each investee Company held during the year had been recorded as income with reference to investee Company announcements obtained from an independent data vendor. Risk of incomplete or inaccurate revenue recognition, including the classification of special dividends as revenue or capital items in the Statement of Comprehensive Income (refer to the Report of the Audit Committee set out on page 44 and the accounting policy set out on page63). The total revenue for the year to 30 June 2025 was £3.01 million (2024: £2.20 million), consisting primarily of overseas dividend income. The investment income receivable by the Company during the year directly affects the Company’s revenue return. There is a risk of incomplete or inaccurate recognition of revenue through the failure to recognise proper income entitlements or to apply an appropriate accounting treatment. The Directors may be required to exercise judgment in determining whether income receivable in the form of special dividends should be classified as ‘revenue’ or ‘capital’ in the Statement of Comprehensive Income. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 49 Risk Our response to the risk Key observations communicated to the Audit Committee The Company received four special dividends (2024: seven special dividends) amounting to £0.23 million (2024: £0.09 million) and all were classified as revenue. For all dividends accrued at the year end, we reviewed the investee company announcements to assess whether the dividend obligation arose prior to 30 June 2025. We agreed the dividend rate to corresponding announcements made by the investee company, recalculated the dividend amount receivable and we will confirm this is consistent with cash received as shown on post year end bank statements, where paid before our signing date. For all investments held during the year, we reviewed the type of dividends paid with reference to an external data vendor to identify those which were special. For a sample of one special dividend, we assessed the appropriateness of managements classification as revenue, by reviewing the underlying rationale of the distribution. The results of our procedures identified no material misstatement in relation to the risk of incorrect valuation or ownership of the investment portfolio and the resulting impact on the Statement of Comprehensive Income. We have performed the following procedures: We obtained an understanding of the Manager and the Administrator processes and controls surrounding investment pricing and ownership by performing walkthrough procedures. For all quoted investments in the portfolio, we compared the market prices and exchange rates applied to an independent pricing vendor and recalculated the investment valuations as at the year-end. Risk of incorrect valuation or ownership of the investment portfolio and the resulting impact on the Statement of Comprehensive Income refer to the Report of the Audit Committee set out on page 44 and the accounting policy set out on page 63). The valuation of the investment portfolio at 30 June 2025 was £482.87million (2024: £451.03 million) consisting of quoted investments with an aggregate value of £450.59million (2024: £448.41million) and unquoted investments with an aggregate value of £32.28million (2024: £2.61million). Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Independent Auditor’s Report To The Members Of Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust Plc (continued) 50 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 50 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 51 Risk Our response to the risk Key observations communicated to the Audit Committee The valuation of the assets held in the investment portfolio is the key driver of the Company’s net asset value and total return. Incorrect investment pricing, or a failure to maintain proper legal title to the investments held by the Company could have a significant impact on the portfolio valuation and the return generated for shareholders. The fair value of quoted investments is determined by reference to bid value on the relevant exchange. If bid value is unavailable, then the last trade price on the relevant exchange is used. Unquoted investments are valued at fair value by the Directors following a review of the valuations proposed by the Investment Manager. The unquoted investment policy applies methodologies consistent with the International Private Equity and Venture Capital Valuation guidelines (“IPEV”). The valuation of the unquoted investments, and the resultant impact on the unrealised gains/(losses), is an area requiring the most significant judgement and estimation in the preparation of the financial statements and has been classified as an area of fraud risk as highlighted below on page 55. We assessed the liquidity of the investment portfolio through analysing the monthly average trading volume of the investments. We also reviewed the stale pricing report to identify prices that have not changed and tested whether the quoted price is a valid fair value. We compared the Company’s investment holdings as at 30 June 2025 to independent confirmations received directly from the Company’s Custodian or from the investee company. For a sample of two manager priced investments, we engaged our valuation specialist to review and challenge the valuations. The remaining four unquoted investments were reviewed by the audit team. The reviews of the specialist and audit team included: • Reviewing the valuation paper prepared as at 30 June 2025. • Assessing and challenging the appropriateness of the data inputs and assumptions used to support the valuation. • Assessing and challenging other facts and circumstances, such as market movement, recent transactions and comparative company information, that have an impact on the fair market value of the investment. • Assessing whether the valuation has been performed in line with the IPEV guidelines. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 51 Risk Our response to the risk Key observations communicated to the Audit Committee The results of our procedures identified no material misstatement in relation to the risk of incorrect calculation and allocation of the performance fee. We performed the following procedures: We obtained an understanding of the processes and controls surrounding the performance fee calculation by performing our walkthrough procedures to evaluate the design and implementation of controls. We performed a recalculation of the performance fee based on the calculation methodology set out in the IMA and summarised above. We agreed the key inputs for the calculation to external source data and audited workpapers. We agreed the performance fee accrual that has been recognised for the year which is in accordance with the accounting policy and the IMA. We have also reviewed the underlying calculation for the allocation of performance fee between revenue and capital and have ensured the allocation is in line with AIC SORP guidance. Risk of incorrect calculation and allocation of the performance fee refer to the Report of the Audit Committee set out on page 44 and the accounting policy set out on page 64). The total performance fee expensed in the Statement of Comprehensive Income for the year ended 30 June 2025 is £15.95 (2024: £0.16 million) split between £0.95million (2024: (£0.14million)) under revenue and £15.0 million (2024: £0.30 million) under capital column. The total performance fee payable as at the year-end was the year end provision of £15.95million (2024: £2.30million). The performance fees payable by the Company for investment management services are a significant component of the Company’s cost base and, therefore impacts the Company’s total return. If the performance fee is not calculated in accordance with the methodology prescribed in the investment management agreement (‘IMA’) and incorrect data is used this could have a significant impact on both costs and total return. • Determining a fair value range/price for the valuation and assessing whether management’s valuation is reasonable. We recalculated the unrealised gains/losses on unquoted investments as at the year- end using the book-cost reconciliation and reviewed the level 3 fair value hierarchy disclosure. Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Independent Auditor’s Report To The Members Of Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust Plc (continued) 52 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 52 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 53 Our application of materiality We apply the concept of materiality in planning and performing the audit, in evaluating the effect of identified misstatements on the audit and in forming our audit opinion. Materiality The magnitude of an omission or misstatement that, individually or in the aggregate, could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of the users of the financial statements. Materiality provides a basis for determining the nature and extent of our audit procedures. We determined materiality for the Company to be £4.76 million (2024: £4.35 million), which is 1% (2024: 1%) of net assets. We believe that net assets provides us with materiality aligned to the users interests as it represents a key measurement of the Company’s performance. Performance materiality The application of materiality at the individual account or balance level. It is set at an amount to reduce to an appropriately low level the probability that the aggregate of uncorrected and undetected misstatements exceeds materiality. On the basis of our risk assessments, together with our assessment of the Company’s overall control environment, our judgement was that performance materiality was 75% (2024: 75%) of our planning materiality, namely £3.57 million (2024: £3.27 million). We have set performance materiality at this percentage due to our experience from prior years and our assessment of the impact of any prior year errors. Given the importance of the distinction between revenue and capital for investment trusts, we have applied a separate testing threshold for the revenue column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income of £0.24 million (2024: £0.22 million), being our reporting threshold. Reporting threshold An amount below which identified misstatements are considered as being clearly trivial. We agreed with the Audit Committee that we would report to them all uncorrected audit differences in excess of £0.24million (2024: £0.22million), which is set at 5% of planning materiality, as well as differences below that threshold that, in our view, warranted reporting on qualitative grounds. We evaluate any uncorrected misstatements against both the quantitative measures of materiality discussed above and in light of other relevant qualitative considerations in forming our opinion. Other information The other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The directors are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in this report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of the other information, we are required to report that fact. We have nothing to report in this regard. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 53 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Independent Auditor’s Report To The Members Of Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust Plc (continued) 54 Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006 In our opinion the part of the directors’ remuneration report to be audited has been properly prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 2006. In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit: • the information given in the strategic report and the directors’ report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and • the strategic report and directors’ report have been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements. Matters on which we are required to report by exception In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the Company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the strategic report or directors’ report. We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion: • adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or • the financial statements and the part of the Directors’ Remuneration Report to be audited are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or • certain disclosures of directors’ remuneration specified by law are not made; or • we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit. Corporate Governance Statement We have reviewed the directors’ statement in relation to going concern, longer-term viability and that part of the Corporate Governance Statement relating to the Company’s compliance with the provisions of the UK Corporate Governance Code specified for our review by the UK Listing Rules. Based on the work undertaken as part of our audit, we have concluded that each of the following elements of the Corporate Governance Statement is materially consistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained during the audit: • Directors’ statement with regards to the appropriateness of adopting the going concern basis of accounting and any material uncertainties identified set out on page 29; • Directors’ explanation as to its assessment of the Company’s prospects, the period this assessment covers and why the period is appropriate set out on pages 24 and 25; • Director’s statement on whether it has a reasonable expectation that the Company will be able to continue in operation and meets its liabilities set out on page 29; • Directors’ statement on fair, balanced and understandable set out on page 46; • Board’s confirmation that it has carried out a robust assessment of the emerging and principal risks set out on page 13; • The section of the annual report that describes the review of effectiveness of risk management and internal control systems set out on page 37; and • The section describing the work of the Audit Committee set out on pages 43 to 45. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 54 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 55 Responsibilities of directors As explained more fully in the directors’ responsibilities statement set out on page 46, the directors are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the directors determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, the directors are responsible for assessing the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the directors either intend to liquidate the Company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so. Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements. Explanation as to what extent the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect irregularities, including fraud. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement due to fraud is higher than the risk of not detecting one resulting from error, as fraud may involve deliberate concealment by, for example, forgery or intentional misrepresentations, or through collusion. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud is detailed below. However, the primary responsibility for the prevention and detection of fraud rests with both those charged with governance of the Company and management. • We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory frameworks that are applicable to the Company and determined that the most significant are UK adopted International Accounting Standards, the Companies Act 2006, the UK Listing Rules, UK and AIC Corporate Governance Codes, the Association of Investment Companies’ Code and Statement of Recommended Practice, Section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 and The Companies (Miscellaneous Reporting) Regulations 2018. • We understood how the Company is complying with those frameworks through discussions with the Audit Committee and Company Secretary and review of Board minutes. • We assessed the susceptibility of the Company’s financial statements to material misstatement, including how fraud might occur by considering the key risks impacting the financial statements. We identified fraud risks with respect to the incomplete or inaccurate income recognition through the incorrect classification of special dividends and incorrect valuation of the unquoted investments and the resulting impact on the unrealised gains/(losses). Further discussion of our approach is set out in the section on key audit matters above. • Based on this understanding we designed our audit procedures to identify non-compliance with such laws and regulations. Our procedures involved a review of the reporting to the Directors with respect to the application of the documented policies and procedures and review of the financial statements to ensure compliance with the reporting requirements of the Company. A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at https://www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 55 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Independent Auditor’s Report To The Members Of Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust Plc (continued) 56 Other matters we are required to address • Following the recommendation from the Audit Committee, we were appointed by the Company on 28 March 2019 to audit the financial statements for the period ending 30 June 2019 and subsequent financial periods. The period of total uninterrupted engagement including previous renewals and reappointments is seven years, covering the years ending 30 June 2019 to 30 June 2025. • The audit opinion is consistent with the additional report to the Audit Committee. Use of our report This report is made solely to the Company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the Company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the company and the Company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed. Mike Gaylor (Senior statutory auditor) for and on behalf of Ernst & Young LLP, Statutory Auditor London 8 October 2025 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg27-56.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 56 For the year ended For the year ended 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total Note £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 Gains on investments 4 – 27,199 27,199 – 114,999 114,999 Losses on currency movements – (2,204) (2,204) – (3,405) (3,405) Net investment gains – 24,995 24,995 – 111,594 111,594 Income 5 3,011 – 3,011 2,196 – 2,196 Total income 3,011 24,995 28,006 2,196 111,594 113,790 Performance fees 7 (957) (14,997) (15,954) (139) 302 163 Operating expenses 8 (1,007) – (1,007) (1,533) – (1,533) Operating profit before taxation 1,047 9,998 11,045 524 111,896 112,420 Taxation 9 (372) (11,726) (12,098) (216) (15,551) (15,767) (Loss)/profit for the year 675 (1,728) (1,053) 308 96,345 96,653 Earnings per Ordinary Share 10 0.41p (1.05)p (0.64)p 0.25p 76.99p 77.24p There is no other comprehensive income and therefore the ‘Profit/(loss) for the period’ is the total comprehensive income for the year ended 30 June 2025. The total column of the above statement is the profit and loss account of the Company. The supplementary revenue and capital columns, including the earnings per Ordinary Shares, are prepared under guidance from the Association of Investment Companies. All revenue and capital items in the above statement derive from continuing operations. Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Statement of Comprehensive Income 57 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS The notes on pages 61 to 78 form an integral part of these financial statements. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 57 As at As at 30 June 30 June 2025 2024 Note £’000 £’000 Non-current assets Investments held at fair value through profit or loss 4 482,867 451,026 Current assets Cash and cash equivalents 27,374 5,677 Dividend receivable 201 307 Other receivables 110 156 27,685 6,140 Total assets 510,552 457,166 Current liabilities Purchases for future settlement – (1,534) Other payables 6 (349) (735) Performance fee payable 7 – (2,301) Non-current liabilities Performance fee payable 7 (15,954) – Capital gains tax provision 9 (18,094) (17,157) Total liabilities (34,397) (21,727) Net assets 476,155 435,439 Equity Share capital 12 1,720 1,572 Share premium account 248,415 206,794 Special distributable reserve 13 44,276 44,276 Capital reserve 180,753 182,481 Revenue reserve 991 316 Total equity 476,155 435,439 Net asset value per Ordinary Share 14 278.9p 279.3p Approved by the Board of Directors on 8 October 2025 and signed on its behalf by: Andrew Watkins Chairman Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc incorporated in England and Wales with registered number 11356069. Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Statement of Financial Position 58 The notes on pages 61 to 78 form an integral part of these financial statements. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 58 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Statement of Changes in Equity 59 For the financial year ended 30 June 2025 Share Special Share premium distributable Capital Revenue Capital account reserve reserve reserve Total Notes £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 Opening balance as at 1,572 206,794 44,276 182,481 316 435,439 1July 2024 Profit /(loss) for the year – – – (1,728) 675 (1,053) Issue of Ordinary Shares 12 148 42,070 – – – 42,218 Share issue costs – (449) – – – (449) Closing balance as at 30June 2025 1,720 248,415 44,276 180,753 991 476,155 For the financial year ended 30 June 2024 Share Special Share premium distributable Capital Revenue Capital account reserve reserve reserve Total Notes £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 Opening balance as at 1,128 101,003 44,276 86,136 8 232,551 1July 2023 Profit for the year – – – 96,345 308 96,653 Issue of Ordinary Shares 12 431 107,077 – – – 107,508 Share issue costs – (1,286) – – – (1,286) Management Shares 12 13 – – – – 13 Closing balance as at 30June 2024 1,572 206,794 44,276 182,481 316 435,439 The Company's distributable reserves consist of the special distributable reserve, revenue reserve and capital reserve attributable to realised profit. The notes on pages 61 to 78 form an integral part of these financial statements. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 59 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 60 For the year For the year ended ended 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 Note £’000 £’000 Cash flows from operating activities Operating profit before taxation 11,045 112,420 Taxation paid (11,161) (6,323) Decrease/(increase) in receivables 152 (9) Increase in payables 13,267 52 Adjustment for gains on investments 4 (27,161) (114,999) Net cash flow used in operating activities (13,858) (8,859) Cash flows from investing activities Purchase of investments (264,317) (276,302) Sale of investments 258,103 178,114 Net cash flow used in investing activities (6,214) (98,188) Cash flows from financing activities Proceeds from issue of Ordinary Shares 12 42,218 107,508 Proceeds from Management Shares issued – 13 Share issue costs (449) (1,286) Net cash flow from financing activities 41,769 106,235 Increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 21,697 (812) Cash and cash equivalents at start of year 5,677 6,489 Cash and cash equivalents at end of year 27,374 5,677 The notes on pages 61 to 78 form an integral part of these financial statements. Statement of Cash Flows 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 60 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 61 Notes to the Financial Statements 1. Reporting entity Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc is a closed-ended investment company, registered in England and Wales on 11 May 2018. The Company’s registered office is 4th Floor 46-48 James Street, London, England, W1U 1EZ. Business operations commenced on 6July 2018 when the Company’s Ordinary Shares were admitted to trading on the LSE. The financial statements of the Company are presented for the year from 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025. The Company primarily invests in securities listed on any stock exchange in India and can invest in the securities of companies with asignificant presence in India that are listed on stock exchanges outside India. 2. Basis of preparation Statement of compliance These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with applicable law and the UK-adopted international accounting standards. The financial statements have been prepared on a historical cost basis, except for the measurement at fair value of investments. When presentational guidance set out in the Statement of Recommended Practice (“SORP”) for Investment Companies issued by the Association of Investment Companies (“the AIC”) in July 2022 is consistent with the requirements of IFRS, the Directors have sought to prepare the financial statements on a basis compliant with the recommendations of the SORP. In preparing these Financial Statements the Directors have considered the impact of climate change risk as a Principal and emerging risk as set out on pages 13 to 15. In line with the UK-adopted international accounting standards, investments are valued at fair value, being primarily quoted prices for investments in active markets at the balance sheet date, and therefore reflect market participant’ s view of climate change risk. Unlisted investments, valued by reference to appropriate valuation techniques (see note 3), similarly reflect market participants’ view of climate change risk. Going concern The Directors have concluded that there is a reasonable expectation that the Company will have adequate liquidity and cash balances to meet its liabilities, including those from the Company’s annual redemption facility, as they fall due and continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future and continue as a going concern for the period to 31 December 2026. As such the Directors have adopted the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements. For further details of the Directors’ consideration of going concern, see page 29. Use of estimates and judgements The preparation of the financial statements requires management to make judgements, estimates and assumptions that affect the application of accounting policies and the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, income and expenses. Actual results may differ fr om these estimates. The resulting accounting estimates and assumptions will, by definition, seldom equal the related actual results. Estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an on-going basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimates are revised and in any future periods affected. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 61 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 62 2. Basis of preparation (continued) Use of estimates and judgements (continued) The Indian capital gains tax provision represents an estimate of the amount of tax payable by the Company. Tax amounts payable may differ from this provision depending on when the Company disposes of investments. The current provision for Indian capital gains tax is calculated based on the long-term or short-term nature of the investments and the applicable tax rate at the year end. Currently , the short-term tax rate is 20% and the long-term tax rate is 12.5% (30 June 2024: 15% and 10% respectively). The estimated tax charge is subject to regular review including a consideration of the likely period of ownership, tax rates and market valuation movements. As disclosed in the statement of financial position, the Company made a capital gains tax provision as at 30 June 2025 of £18,094,000 (30 June 2024: £17,157,000) in respect of unrealised gains on investments held. The key estimate in the financial statements is the determination of the fair value of the unlisted investments by the Investment Manager for consideration by the Directors. This estimate is key as it significantly impacts the valuation of the unlisted investments at the year end. The fair valuation process involves estimation using subjective inputs that are unobservable (for which market data is unavailable). The key inputs considered in the valuation are described in note 15. Fair value estimates are cross-checked to alternative estimation methods where possible to improve the robustness of the estimates. The risk of an over or under estimation of fair values is greater when methodologies are applied using more subjective inputs. Basis of measurement The financial statements have been prepared on the historical cost basis except for financial instruments at fair value through profit or loss, which are measured at fair value. The Company’s investments are denominated in Indian rupees. However, the Company’s shares are issued in sterling and the majority of its investors are UK based. The Company’s expenses and dividends are also paid in sterling. Therefore, the financial statements ar e presented in sterling, which is the Company’s functional currency. All financial information has been rounded to the nearest thousand pounds. 3. Accounting policies (a) Investments Listed investments Changes in the fair value of investments held at fair value through profit or loss and gains or losses on disposal are included in the capital column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income within “Gains on investments”. Investments are derecognised on the trade date of their disposal, which is the point where the Company transfers substantially all the risks and rewards of the ownership of the financial asset. Any dividend declared between the disposal trade and settlement date is not attributable to the Company. Transaction costs directly attributable to the acquisition of investments at fair value through profit or loss are recognised under gains/(losses) on investments. Notes to the Financial Statements (continued) 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 62 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 63 Unlisted investments The Investment Manager’s unlisted investment valuation policy applies techniques consistent with the IPEV Guidelines. The techniques applied are predominantly market-based approaches or discounted cash flows where appropriate forecasts can be done. The market-based approaches available under IPEV Guidelines are set out below and are followed by an explanation of how they are applied to the Company’s unlisted portfolio: — Multiples; and — Industry Valuation Benchmarks. The nature of the unlisted portfolio currently will influence the valuation technique applied. The valuation approach recognises that, as stated in the IPEV Guidelines, the price of a recent investment, if resulting from an orderly transaction, generally represents fair value as at the transaction date and may be an appropriate starting point for estimating fair value at subsequent measurement dates. However, consideration is given to the facts and circumstances as at the subsequent measurement date, including changes in the market or performance of the investee company. Milestone analysis is used where appropriate to incorporate the operational progress of the investee company into the valuation. Additionally, the background to the transaction must be considered. As a result, various Multiples-based techniques are employed to assess the valuations particularly in those companies with established revenues. Discounted cash flows are used where appropriate. An absence of relevant industry peers may preclude the application of the industry valuation benchmarks technique. All valuations are cross-checked for reasonableness by employing relevant alternative techniques. (b) Foreign currency Transactions in currencies other than pounds sterling are recorded at the rates of exchange prevailing on the dates of the transactions. At the date of each Statement of Financial Position, monetary assets and liabilities that are denominated in foreign currencies are retranslated at the rates prevailing on that date. Non-monetary assets and liabilities carried at fair value that ar e denominated in foreign currencies are translated at the rates prevailing at the date when the fair value was determined. Gains and losses arising on retranslation are included in the Statement of Comprehensive Income within the revenue or capital column depending on the nature of the underlying item. Foreign exchange movements on investments are included in the Statement of Comprehensive Income within “Losses on currency movements”. (c) Income from investments Dividend income from shares is accounted for on the basis of ex-dividend dates. Overseas income is grossed up at the appropriate rate of tax. Special dividends are assessed on their individual merits and may be credited to the Statement of Comprehensive Income as a capital item if considered to be closely linked to reconstructions of the investee company or other capital transactions. All other investment income is credited to the Statement of Comprehensive Income as a revenue item. Interest on fixed income instruments is accounted on an accrual basis. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 63 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 64 3. Accounting policies (continued) (d) Capital reserves Profits or losses arising on the sale of investments and changes in fair value arising upon the revaluation of investments are credited or charged to the capital column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income and allocated to the Capital reserve. The Company’s redemption facility is subject to approval by the Board and as such the redemption facility does not represent acontractual obligation on the Company and the shares are accordingly classified as equity. (e) Expenses All expenses are accounted for on an accrual basis. Expenses are recognised through the Statement of Comprehensive Income as revenue items. Performance fees payable are allocated in accordance with the AIC guidance where that part of the Performance fee directly attributable to the revenue performance of the Company is allocated to revenue and shown in the revenue column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income, and the part that is directly attributable to the capital performance of the Company’s investments is allocated to capital and shown in the capital column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income. For further details on the performance fee, see note 7. No other management fees are payable by the Company. (f) Cash and cash equivalents Cash comprises cash at hand and demand deposits. For purposes of the statement of cash flows, cash equivalents, including bank overdrafts, are short-term, highly liquid investments that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash, are subject to insignificant risks of changes in value, and are held for the purpose of meeting short-term cash commitments rather than for investment or other purposes. (g) Taxation Irrecoverable taxation on dividends is recognised on an accrual’s basis in the Statement of Comprehensive Income. Indian tax rates for dividends with ex-dividend dates post 1 April 2020 are subject to 20% withholding tax. See note 9 for further details. The tax charges on Indian capital gains taxes are shown in the Statement of Comprehensive Income, recognised on an accrual basis. The Company is not subject to UK capital gains tax. Deferred taxation Deferred tax is the tax expected to be payable or recoverable on differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities in the financial statements and the corresponding tax bases used in the computation of taxable profit and is accounted for using the statement of financial position liability method. Deferred tax liabilities are recognised for all taxable temporary differences and deferred tax assets are recognised to the extent that it is probable that taxable profits will be available against which deductible temporary differences can be utilised. Investment trusts which have approval as such under Section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 are not liable for taxation on capital gains. Notes to the Financial Statements (continued) 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 64 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 65 (h) Adoption of new IFRS standards A number of new standards, amendments to standards and interpretations are effective for the annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2024. None of these have a material impact on the measurement of the amounts recognised in the financial statements of the Company. (i) New standards and amendments issued but not yet effective The relevant new and amended standards and interpretations that are issued, but not yet effective, up to the date of issuance of the Company’s financial statements are disclosed below. These standards are not expected to have a material impact on the entity in future reporting periods and on foreseeable future transactions. Amendments to IAS 21: Lack of Exchangeability In January 2024, the IASB issued amendments to IAS 21 to provide guidance on determining the exchange rate when there is a lack of exchangeability. These amendments are effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2025. Amendments to IFRS 9 and IFRS 7: Contracts Referencing Nature-dependent Electricity In May 2024, the IASB issued amendments to IFRS 9 and IFRS 7 to provide guidance on the classification and measurement of contracts referencing nature-dependent electricity. These amendments are effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2026. IFRS 18 Presentation and Disclosure in Financial Statements In April 2024, the IASB published IFRS 18, including new requirements for presentation and disclosure in the financial statements with a focus on the income statement. IFRS 18 will not impact the recognition or measurement of items in the financial statements, but it might change what an entity reports as its operating profit or loss. IFRS 18 will be effective for annual reporting periods on or after 1 January 2027, with earlier application permitted. IFRS 19: Subsidiaries without Public Accountability – Disclosures IFRS 19: Subsidiaries without Public Accountability – Disclosures In April 2024, the IASB issued IFRS 19, which provides disclosure requirements for subsidiaries without public accountability. IFRS 19 is effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2027, with earlier application permitted. Amendments to IFRS 9 and IFRS 7- Amendments to the Classification and Measurement of Financial Instruments In May 2024, the IASB published Amendments to IFRS 9 and IFRS 7 - Amendments to the Classification and Measurement of Financial instruments. The Amendments will be effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2026, with earlier application permitted. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 65 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 66 4. Investments held at fair value through profit or loss (a) Investments held at fair value through profit or loss As at As at 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 £’000 £’000 Quoted investments in India 450,591 448,412 Unquoted investments in India 32,276 2,614 Closing valuation 482,867 451,026 (b) Movements in valuation As at As at 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 £’000 £’000 Opening valuation 451,026 236,764 Opening unrealised gains on investments (121,134) (56,724) Opening book cost 329,892 180,040 Additions, at cost 262,282 276,533 Disposals, at cost (201,150) (126,681) Closing book cost 391,024 329,892 Revaluation of investments 91,843 121,134 Closing valuation 482,867 451,026 Transaction costs on investment purchases for the year ended 30 June 2025 amounted to £501,000 (30 June 2024: £520,000) and on investment sales for the financial year to 30 June 2025 amounted to £384,000 (30 June 2024: £347,000). As at year end £32.7 million (30 June 2024: £27.2 million) of investments were subject to lock in periods. (c) Gains/(losses) on investments For the For the Year ended Year ended 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 £’000 £’000 Realised gains on disposal of investments 57,337 51,433 Transaction costs (885) (867) Movement in unrealised gains on investments held (29,291) 64,410 Movement in unrealised gains on futures held 38 23 Total gains on investments 27,199 114,999 Under IFRS 13 ‘Fair Value Measurement’, an entity is required to classify investments using a fair value hierarchy that reflects the significance of the inputs used in making the measurement decision. Notes to the Financial Statements (continued) 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 66 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 67 The following shows the analysis of financial assets recognised at fair value based on: Level 1 Quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that the entity can access at the measurement date. Level 2 Inputs other than quoted prices included within level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indir ectly. Level 3 Unobservable inputs for the asset or liability. The classification of the Company’s investments held at fair value is detailed in the table below: As at 30 June 2025 As at 30 June 2024 Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 Investments at fair value through profit and loss – Quoted investments in India 450,591 – – 450,591 448,412 – – 448,412 – Unquoted investments in India – – 32,276 32,276 – – 2,614 2,614 450,591 – 32,276 482,867 448,412 – 2,614 451,026 The movement on the Level 3 unquoted investments during the period is shown below: As at As at 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 £’000 £’000 Opening balance 2,614 3,461 Additions during the year 29,087 – Disposals during the year – (1,569) Conversion from level 3 to level 1 investments – – Total gains for the year recognised in profit or loss 575 722 Foreign exchange movements – – Closing balance 32,276 2,614 As at year end, the Company had six unquoted investments; Veeda Clinical Research Ltd 680,790 shares, Simpolo Vitrified Private Ltd 156,000 shares, Ellenbarrie Industrial Gases Ltd 1,426,266 shares, Manjushree Technopack Ltd 9,285,297 shares, Sudeep Pharma Ltd 622,543 shares and Sambhv Steel Tubes Ltd 2,056,600 shares . Unquoted investments are valued by the Investment Manager in accordance with the International Private Equity and Venture Capital Valuation Guidelines 2022 (“IPEV”) guidelines which are consistent with IFRS. The Investment Manager applies techniques consistent with the IPEV. The key inputs considered in the valuation are described on page 75. Financial assets and liabilities are held at fair value in the financial statements with the exception of short-term assets and liabilities wher e their carrying value approximates to fair value. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 67 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 68 5. Income For the For the year ended year ended 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 £’000 £’000 Income from investments: Overseas dividends 2,299 1,951 Overseas income – REIT 662 239 Other income: Bank interest Income 50 6 Total income 3,011 2,196 6. Other payables As at As at 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 £’000 £’000 Accrued expenses 349 735 Total other payables 349 735 7. Performance fee For the year ended 30 June 2025 For the year ended 30 June 2024 Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 Performance fees expenses 957 14,997 15,954 139 (302) (163) The Investment Manager does not receive a fixed management fee in respect of its portfolio management services to the Company. The Investment Manager will become entitled to a performance fee subject to the Company delivering excess returns versus the MSCI India IMI Index (in sterling terms) in the medium term. The performance fee is measured over periods of three years (Performance Period) with this Performance Period ending on 30 June 2027. The performance fee in any Performance Period shall be capped at 12% of the time weighted average adjusted net assets during the relevant Performance Period. The Investment Management Agreement was updated during the year to clarify that under its terms, the Investment Manager has the optionality to receive the performance fee in cash. However, the Investment Manager has given written confirmation of their intention not to exercise this election and to receive any performance fee in Ordinary Shares. The performance fee is calculated at a rate of 30% of the excess returns between adjusted NAV per share on the last day of the performance period and the MSCI India IMI Index (in sterling terms) over the performance period, adjusted for the weighted average number of Ordinary Shares in issue during the performance period. The Performance Fee in respect of each Performance Period will be paid at the end of the three year period. The performance fee is allocated in accordance with the AIC guidance where that part of the Performance fee directly attributable to the revenue performance of the Company (6%) is allocated to revenue and shown in the revenue column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income, and the part that is directly attributable to the capital performance of the Company’s investments (94%) is allocated to capital and shown in the capital column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income. As at 30 June 2025, there was a £15,954,000 provision for the performance fee liability to the Investment Manager for the one year performance period (30 June 2024: £2,301,000 for the previous full three year period). Notes to the Financial Statements (continued) 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 68 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 69 8. Operating expenses For the For the year ended year ended 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 £’000 £’000 Administration & secretarial fees 298 232 Auditor’s remuneration – Statutory audit fee 75 60 Broker fees 41 40 Custody services 95 48 Directors’ fees 152 128 Tax compliance and advice 61 119 Marketing and public relations 58 497 Registrar fees 26 37 Legal Fees 59 133 Regulatory fees 35 18 Other expenses 107 221 Total 1,007 1,533 * Auditor’s remuneration excludes VAT. ** Other expenses include Employers National Insurance Contribution, LSE, KID fees, Distribution fees, other license fees, bank charges and other miscellaneous fees. 9. Taxation (a) Analysis of charge in the year: For the year ended 30 June 2025 For the year ended 30 June 2024 Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 Capital gains tax provision – 937 937 – 9,444 9,444 Capital gains expense – 10,789 10,789 – 6,107 6,107 Indian withholding tax 372 – 372 216 – 216 Total tax charge for the year 372 11,726 12,098 216 15,551 15,767 The Company is liable to Indian capital gains tax under Section 115 AD of the Indian Income Tax Act 1961. A tax provision on Indian capital gains is calculated based on the long term (securities held more than one year) or short term (securities held less than one year) nature of the investments and the applicable tax rate at the period end. The short-term tax rates are 20% and the long term tax rates are 12.5% (30 June 2024: 15% and 10% respectively). 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 69 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 70 9. Taxation (continued) (b) Factors affecting the tax charge for the year: The standard UK corporation tax rate as at the period is 25% (30 June 2024: 25%). The tax charge differs from the charge resulting from applying the standard rate of UK corporation tax for an investment trust company. The differences are explained below: For the For the Year ended Year ended 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 £’000 £’000 Operating profit before taxation 11,045 112,420 UK Corporation tax at 25% (2024: 25%) 2,761 28,105 Effects of: Indian capital gains tax charge 11,726 15,551 Gains on investments not taxable (6,249) (27,899) Overseas dividends not taxable (740) (548) Other income not taxable (12) (2) Unutilised management expenses 4,240 344 Indian withholding tax 372 216 Total tax charge for the year 12,098 15,767 The Company is not liable to UK Corporation tax on capital gains due to its status as an investment trust. The Company has an unrecognised deferred UK Corporation tax asset of £8,034,000 (30 June 2024: £3,806,000) based on the UK corporation tax rate of 25% (2024: 25%). This asset has accumulated because deductible expenses exceeded taxable income for the year ended 30 June 2025. No asset has been recognised in the accounts because, given the composition of the Company’s portfolio, it is unlikely that this asset will be utilised in the foreseeable future. (c) Movements on the capital gains tax provision for the year The capital gains tax provision represents an estimate of the amount of tax provisionally payable by the Company on direct investment in Indian equities. It is calculated based on the long term or short term nature of the investments and the unrealised gain ther eon at the applicable tax rate at the year end. As of 30 June 2025, the Company made a capital gains tax provision of £18,094,000 (30 June 2024: £17,157,000) in respect of unrealised gains on investments held. 10. Earnings per Ordinary Share For the year ended 30 June 2025 For the year ended 30 June 2024 Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total (Loss)/Profit for the year (£’000) 675 (1,728) (1,053) 308 96,345 96,653 Earnings per Ordinary Share 0.41p (1.05)p (0.64)p 0.25p 76.99p 77.24p Earnings per Ordinary Share is based on the loss for the year of £1,053,000 (30 June 2024: profit £96,653,000) attributable to the weighted average number of Ordinary Shares in issue during the year ended 30 June 2025 of 164,187,886 (30 June 2024: 125,146,964). Notes to the Financial Statements (continued) 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 70 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 71 11. Dividend (a) Dividends paid during the year The Company’s objective is to provide shareholder returns through capital growth with income being a secondary consideration. Itshould not be expected that the Company will pay a significant annual dividend, but the Board intends to declare such annual dividends as ar e necessary to maintain the Company’s UK investment trust status. The Board has declared a dividend of 0.5p per Ordinary Share in respect of the year ended 30 June 2025 in accordance with the Company’s Dividend policy on page 11. No dividends were paid during the year to 30 June 2025 (2024: nil). (b) Dividends payable in respect of the financial year, which is the basis on which the requirements of s1158-1159 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 are considered For the year ended For the year ended 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 Rate £’000 Rate £’000 Proposed dividend for the year 0.5p 857 – – 12. Share capital As at 30 June 2025 As at 30 June 2024 No. of shares £’000 No. of shares £’000 Allotted, issued and fully paid: Redeemable Ordinary Shares of 1p each 170,741,893 1,707 155,892,397 1,559 (‘Ordinary Shares’) Non-Redeemable Shares of £1.00 each 50,000 13 50,000 13 (‘Management Shares’) Total 170,791,893 1,720 155,942,397 1,572 Ordinary Shares On incorporation, the issued share capital of the Company was 1 Ordinary Share of £0.01. D uring the year ended 30 June 2025, 14,849,496 Ordinary Shares (30 June 2024: 43,084,585) were issued, with aggregate gross proceeds of £42,218,000 (30 June 2024: £107,508,000). Since the year end, a further 750,000 Ordinary Shares have been issued, with aggregate gross proceeds of £2,143,950. As at the date of this report, the total number of Ordinary Shares in issue is 171,491,893 (30 June 2024: 155,892,397). The Ordinary Shares have attached to them full voting, dividend and capital distribution rights. They confer rights of redemption. The Company’s special distributable reserve may also be used for share repurchases, both into treasury or for cancellation. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 71 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 72 12. Share capital (continued) Management shares In addition to the above, on incorporation the Company issued 50,000 Management Shares of nominal value of £1.00 each. The holder of the Management Shares undertook to pay or procure payment of one quarter of the nominal value of each Management share on or before the fifth anniversary of the date of issue of the Management Shares. During the year, the Management Shares wer e transferred to WhiteOak Capital Management (UK) Limited having previously been held by an associate of the Investment Manager. The Management Shares do not carry a right to attend or vote at general meetings of the Company unless no other shares are in issue at that time. The Management Shares have been treated as equity in accordance with IFRS. 13. Special distributable reserve As indicated in the Company’s prospectus dated 19 June 2018, following admission of the Company’s Ordinary Shares to trading on the LSE, the Directors applied to the Court and obtained a judgement on 4 December 2018 to cancel the amount standing to the credit of the share premium account of the Company. The amount of the share premium account cancelled and credited to a special distributable reserve was £44,275,898. This reserve may also be used to fund dividend/distribution payments. 14. Net assets per ordinary share Net assets per ordinary share as at 30 June 2025 of 278.9p (30 June 2024: 279.3p) is calculated based on £476,155,000 (30 June 2024: £435,439,000) of net assets of the Company attributable to the 170,741,893 (30 June 2024: 155,892,397) Ordinary Shares in issue as at 30 June 2025. 15. Financial instruments and capital disclosures (i) Market risks The Company is subject to a number of market risks in relation to economic conditions in India. Further details on these risks and the management of these risks are included in the Strategic report. The Company’s financial assets and liabilities comprised: As at 30 June 2025 As at 30 June 2024 Interest Non-interest Interest Non-interest bearing bearing Total bearing bearing Total £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 Investments – 482,867 482,867 – 451,026 451,026 Total investment – 482,867 482,867 – 451,026 451,026 Cash and cash equivalent 762 26,612 27,374 1,032 4,645 5,677 Short-term debtors – 311 311 – 463 463 Short-term creditors – (349) (349) – (4,570) (4,570) Long-term creditors – (34,048) (34,048) – (17,157) (17,157) Other net assets 762 (7,474) (6,712) 1,032 (16,619) (15,587) Total financial assets and liabilities 762 476,155 476,155 1,032 434,407 435,439 Notes to the Financial Statements (continued) 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 72 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 73 Market price risk sensitivity The effect on the portfolio of a 10% increase or decrease in market prices would have resulted in an increase or decrease of £48,286,700 (30 June 2024: £45,102,600) in the investments held at fair value through profit or loss at the period end date, which is equivalent to 10.1% (30 June 2024: 10.4%) of the net assets attributable to equity holders. This analysis assumes that all other variables remain constant. The Company’s portfolio of unlisted level 3 investments is not necessarily affected by market performance, however the valuations may be affected by the performance of the underlying securities in line with the valuation criteria in note 15. The unlisted securities sensitivity analysis recognises that the valuation methodologies employed involve different levels of subjectivity in their inputs. The valuations as at 30 June 2025 were primarily driven by the weighted average of Discounted Cash Flow (DCF), Market movement and Index and Peer Group valuations. A. Manjushree Technopack B. Simpolo Vitrified Private Valuation Technique Fair Value of investments £000 Key variable Input Variable Input sensitivity (%) Price impact £000 Negative impact £000 Average of 1) Discounted Cash Flow 2) Market Movement based on Index and 2) Market movement of peers 13,438 For purposes of the sensitivity table it has been determined that discounted cash flow is the appropriate method to illustrate a sensitivity for. A sensitivity of +/– 10% has been applied to the discount rate and the price impact has been disclosed. Discount rate used in Discounted cash flow +4,664 –1,555 Valuation Technique Fair Value of investments £000 Key variable Input Variable Input sensitivity (%) Price impact £000 Negative impact £000 Average of 1) Discounted Cash Flow 2) Market Movement based on Index and 2) Market movement of peers 6,337 For purposes of the sensitivity table it has been determined that discounted cash flow is the appropriate method to illustrate a sensitivity for. A sensitivity of +/– 10% has been applied to the discount rate and the price impact has been disclosed. Discount rate used in Discounted cash flow +2,555 –810 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 73 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 74 15. Financial instruments and capital disclosures (continued) (i) Market risks (continued) C. Ellenbarrie Industrial Gases D. Sudeep Pharma E. Veeda Clinical Research Valuation Technique Fair Value of investments £000 Key variable Input Variable Input sensitivity (%) Price impact £000 Negative impact £000 Average of 1) Discounted Cash Flow 2) Market Movement based on Index and 2) Market movement of peers 5,245 For purposes of the sensitivity table it has been determined that discounted cash flow is the appropriate method to illustrate a sensitivity for. A sensitivity of +/– 10% has been applied to the discount rate and the price impact has been disclosed. Discount rate used in Discounted cash flow +448 –419 Valuation Technique Fair Value of investments £000 Key variable Input Variable Input sensitivity (%) Price impact £000 Negative impact £000 Cost price of last transaction 2,980 Price of latest transaction deemedfair value n/a n/a n/a Valuation Technique Fair Value of investments £000 Key variable Input Variable Input sensitivity (%) Price impact £000 Negative impact £000 Average of 1) Discounted Cash Flow 2) Market Movement based on Index and 2) Market movement of peers 2,811 For purposes of the sensitivity table it has been determined that discounted cash flow is the appropriate method to illustrate a sensitivity for. A sensitivity of +/– 10% has been applied to the discount rate and the price impact has been disclosed. Discount rate used in Discounted cash flow +448 –191 Notes to the Financial Statements (continued) 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 74 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 75 F. Sambhv Steel Tubes Key variable inputs The variable inputs applicable to each broad category of valuation basis will vary dependent on the particular circumstances of each unlisted company valuation. An explanation of each of the key variable inputs is provided below and includes an indication of the range in value for each input, where relevant. Expected future cash flows and equity discount rate/WACC The expected future cash flows are calculated using the aggregate future operating revenue based on growth in existing and new products resulting from the investment’s ongoing capex and expansion plans. Equity discount rate/WACC is calculated at 15.8% (2024:16.7%). Selection of Index used The selection of index is assessed based on the market comparable index to the Company. MSCI India IMI (in sterling terms) and S&P BSE 500 were the indices used as the basis for the market movement-based valuation. Selection of comparable companies The selection of comparable companies is assessed individually for each investment at the point of investment, and the relevance of the comparable companies is continually evaluated at each valuation. The key criteria used in selecting appropriate comparable companies are the industry sector in which they operate and the geography of the company’s operations. Application of valuation basis Each investment is assessed and the valuation basis applied will vary depending on the circumstances of each investment. For those investments where a trading multiples approach can be taken, the methodology will factor in revenue, earnings or net assets as appropriate for the investment. Discounted cash flows will be considered where appropriate forecasts are available. The valuation will also consider any recent transactions, where appropriate. Estimated sustainable earnings and cash flows The selection of sustainable revenue or earnings and cash flows will depend on whether the company is sustainably profitable or not, and where it is not then sustainable revenues will be used in the valuation. The valuation approach will typically assess companies based on the last 12 months of revenue or earnings, as they are the most recent available and therefore viewed as the most reliable. Where a company has reliably forecasted earnings previously or there is a change in circumstance at the business which will impact earnings going forward, then forward estimated revenue or earnings may be used instead. Application of liquidity discount A liquidity discount may be applied either through the calibration of a valuation against the most recent transaction, or by application of a specific discount. Valuation Technique Fair Value of investments £000 Key variable Input Variable Input sensitivity (%) Price impact £000 Negative impact £000 Initial Public Offering price 1,436 Confirmed price of IPO on 2 July 2025 n/a n/a n/a 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 75 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 76 15. Financial instruments and capital disclosures (continued) (ii) Liquidity risks There is a risk that the Company’s holdings may not be able to be realised at reasonable prices in a reasonable timeframe. Portfolio by maturity at the year end are shown below: 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 % % Within one to seven days 85.0 87.3 Between seven days to one month 8.3 8.3 Between one and three months 0.4 1.3 Greater than three months 6.3 3.1 Total 100.0 100.0 Management of liquidity risks The Company has a diversified portfolio. The liquidity of the portfolio is reviewed regularly by the Investment Manager and the Board. (iii) Currency risks Although the Company’s performance is measured in sterling, a high proportion of the Company’s assets are denominated in Indian rupees. Change in the exchange rate between sterling and Indian rupees may lead to a depreciation of the value of the Company’s assets as expressed in sterling and may reduce the returns to the Company from its investments. Currency sensitivity The below table shows the foreign currency profile of the Company. Foreign currency risk profile As at 30 June 2025 As at 30 June 2024 Net Total Net Total Investment monetary currency Investment monetary currency exposure exposure exposure exposure exposure exposure Investments £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 Indian Rupees 467,025 (4,638) 462,387 434,256 2,413 436,669 US Dollar 15,843 803 16,646 16,770 1,154 17,924 Total investment 482,868 (3,835) 479,033 451,026 3,567 454,593 Notes to the Financial Statements (continued) 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 76 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 77 Based on the financial assets and liabilities at 30 June 2025 and all other variables remaining constant, if sterling had weakened/strengthened against the Indian rupee by 10%, the impact on the Company’s net assets at 30 June 2025 would have been an increase/(decrease) in fair value as follows: 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 Increase in Decrease in Increase in Decrease in Fair Value Fair Value Fair Value Fair Value £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 Indian Rupees 46,239 (46,239) 43,426 (43,426) Swedish Krona – – – – US Dollar 1,665 (1,665) 1,677 (1,677) Management of currency risks The Company’s Investment Manager monitors the currency risk of the Company’s portfolio on a regular basis. Foreign currency exposure is regularly reported to the Board by the Investment Manager. The Board does not intend to hedge currency risk using any sort of foreign currency transactions, forward transactions or derivative instruments. (iv) Credit risks Credit risk is the risk that the issuer of a financial instrument will fail to fulfil an obligation or commitment that it has entered into with the Company. Cash and other assets are held by the custodian. The Company has appointed Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited (Kotak) as its depositary. The credit rating of Kotak was reviewed at the time of appointment and will be reviewed on a regular basis by the Investment Manager and the Board. The Investment Manager monitors the Company’s exposure to its counterparties on a regular basis and trades in equities are performed on a delivery versus payment basis. Impairment assessment based on an expected credit loss model is not considered material to the Company. At 30 June 2025, the Depository held £467,086,000 (30 June 2024: £451,026,000) in respect of quoted and unquoted investments, with £15,781,000 held with SBM Bank (Mauritius). £13,191,000 in respect of cash was held by the Depository (30 June 2024: £5,677,000) with £13,421,000 held with RBS Bank and £709,000 held with HSBC Bank. (v) Capital management policies and procedures The Company considers its capital to consist of its share capital of Ordinary Shares of 1p each, Management Shares of £1 each, and reserves totalling £476,155,000 (30 June 2024: £435,439,000). The Company is not subject to any externally imposed capital requirements. The Investment Manager and the Company’s Broker monitor the demand for the Company’s shares and the Directors review the position at Board meetings. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 77 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Notes to the Financial Statements (continued) 78 16. Related party transactions The amount accrued in respect of the Performance fees due to the Investment Manager for the current Performance period is disclosed in Note 7. The Investment Adviser provides Investment Advisory services to the Investment Manager and no fees are paid to them from the Company. From 1 July 2024 Directors fees are payable at an annual rate of £48,000 to the Chairman, £40,000 to the Chair of the Audit Committee, and £32,000 to the other Directors. The Directors had the following shareholdings in the Company, all of which are beneficially owned. As at As at 30 June 2025 30 June 2024 Andrew Watkins 94,425 94,425 Jamie Skinner 100,933 100,933 Rita Dhut 81,733 81,733 Dr Jerome Booth 85,522 85,522 17. Post balance sheet events There have been no significant events since the year end which would require revision of the figures or disclosure in the Financial Statements. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 78 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 Alternative Performance Measures 79 Ordinary share price to NAV premium The amount, expressed as a percentage, by which the share price is more/less than the Net Asset Value per share. As at As at Page 30 June 30 June 2025 2024 NAV per Ordinary Share (pence) a 2 278.9 279.3 Share price (pence) b 2 281.5 284.0 Premium (b÷a)-1 0.9% 1.7% There is no calculation of discount shown as the shares were trading at a premium of 0.9% at the year end. Ongoing charges A measure, expressed as a percentage of average net assets, of the regular, recurring annual costs of running an investment company. For the For the year ended year ended Page 30 June 30 June 2025 2024 Average NAV a n/a 456,491,643 306,836,778 Annualised expenses b n/a 945,000 1,533,000 Ongoing charges (b÷a)-1 0.2% 0.5% * Annualised expenses exclude performance fees expense. Share price/NAV total return A measure of performance that includes both income and capital returns. For the year ended 30 June 2025 Page Share price NAV Opening at 1 July 2024 (p) a n/a 284.0 279.3 Closing at 30 June 2025 (p) b 2 281.5 278.9 Total return (b÷a)-1 –0.9% –0.2% For the year ended 30 June 2024 Page Share price NAV Opening at 1 July 2023 (p) a n/a 209.0 206.2 Closing at 30 June 2024 (p) b 2 284.0 279.3 Total return (b÷a)-1 35.9% 35.5% n/a = not applicable. OTHER INFORMATION 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 79 AIC Association of Investment Companies. Alternative Investment Fund or “AIF” An investment vehicle under AIFMD. Under AIFMD (see below) the Company is classified as an AIF. Alternative Investment Fund Managers A European Union directive which came into force on 22 July 2013 Directive or “AIFMD” and has been implemented in the UK. Annual General Meeting or “AGM” A meeting held once a year which Shareholders can attend and where they can vote on resolutions to be put forward at the meeting and ask directors questions about the company in which they are invested. Alternative Performance Measures “APMs” Financial measures of historical or future financial performance, financial position, or cash flows, other than a financial measure defined or specified in the applicable financial reporting framework. Custodian An entity that is appointed to safeguard a company’s assets. Discount The amount, expressed as a percentage, by which the share price is less than the net asset value per share. DTR Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rule. Dividend Income receivable from an investment in shares. Ex-dividend date The date from which you are not entitled to receive a dividend which has been declared and is due to be paid to Shareholders. Financial Conduct Authority or “FCA” The independent body that regulates the financial services industry in the UK. Gearing A way to magnify income and capital returns, but which can also magnify losses. A bank loan is a common method of gearing. IFRS International Financial Reporting Standards. Index A basket of stocks which is considered to replicate a particular stock market or sector. Investment Company A company formed to invest in a diversified portfolio of assets. Investment Trust An investment company which is based in the UK and which meets certain tax conditions which enables it to be exempt from UKcorporation tax on its capital gains. The Company is an investment trust. Liquidity The extent to which investments can be sold at short notice. London Stock Exchange or “LSE” The primary stock exchange in the United Kingdom and the largest in Europe. Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 80 OTHER INFORMATION Glossary 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 80 Management Shares Non-redeemable Management Shares of £1.00 each in the capital of the Company held. MSCI India IMI The MSCI India Investable Market Index measures the performance of the large, mid and small cap segments of the Indian market. It is used by the Company as a comparative performance measure. Net assets or net asset value (“NAV”) An investment company’s assets less its liabilities. NAV per Ordinary Share Net assets divided by the number of Ordinary Shares in issue. Ongoing charges A measure of the regular, recurring annual costs of running an investment company, expressed as a percentage of average net assets. Ordinary Shares Redeemable ordinary shares of £0.01 each in the capital of the Company. Principles for Responsible Investment Principles for Responsible Investment is a United Nations Initiative “PRI” supported international network of investors working together to implement its six aspirational principles, often referenced as “the Principles”. Portfolio A collection of different investments held in order to deliver returns to Shareholders and to spread risk. Premium The amount, expressed as a percentage, by which the share price is more than the net asset value per share. Redemption Point The date and time at which all redemption requests and relevant documentation for annual redemption of Ordinary Shares must be received by the Company’s Registrar from Shareholders. Redemption Price The price at which shares in the Company are redeemed from Shareholders. Relative Performance Measurement of returns relative to an index. Share buyback A purchase of a company’s own shares. Shares can either be bought back for cancellation or held in treasury. Share price The price of a share as determined by a relevant stock market. Total return A measure of performance that takes into account both income and capital returns. This may take into account capital gains, dividends, interests and other realised variables over a given period of time. Treasury shares A company’s own shares held in treasury, which are available to be sold by acompany to raise funds. Volatility A measure of how much a share moves up and down in price over a period of time. Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 81 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 81 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 82 Directors, Investment Manager and Advisers Directors Andrew Watkins (Chairman) Jamie Skinner Dr Jerome Booth Rita Dhut Investment Manager and AIFM Acorn Asset Management Ltd 6th Floor, Two Tribeca Tribeca Central, Trianon 72261 Mauritius Broker Peel Hunt LLP 100 Liverpool Street, London EC2M 2AT Custodian Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited 3rd Floor, 27 BKC C-27 G-Block Bandra Kurla Complex Bandra East Mumbai 400051 India Auditors Ernst & Young LLP 25 Churchill Place, London E14 5EY Registered Office 46-48 James Street, London, W1U 1EZ Registered in England under No. 11356069 Investment Adviser Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Partners Pte. Ltd. 8 Temasek Boulevard #22-04, Suntec City Tower 3, Singapore 038988 Company Secretary & Administrator NSM Funds (UK) Limited 46-48 James Street, London, W1U 1EZ Registrar Computershare Investor Services Plc The Pavilions, Bridgwater Road, Bristol BS13 8AE Legal Adviser Stephenson Harwood LLP 1 Finsbury Circus, London EC2M 7SH Research & Marketing Kepler Partners LLP 70 Conduit Street, London W1S 2GF PR Consultants Lansons 24A St John Street, Barbican, London EC1M 4AY 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 82 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 83 Notice of Annual General Meeting Notice of Meeting Notice is hereby given that the Annual General Meeting of Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc will be held at the offices of Stephenson Harwood LLP, 1 Finsbury Circus, London EC2M 7SH on 10 December 2025 at 11am for the following purposes: To consider and if thought fit pass the following resolutions of which resolutions 1 to 12 will be proposed as ordinary resolutions and resolutions 13 to 15 will be proposed as special resolutions. Ordinary Resolutions 1. To receive and adopt the Company’s Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025, with the reports of the Directors and Auditor thereon. 2. To approve the Directors’ Remuneration Report included in the Annual Report for the year ended 30 June 2025. 3. To approve the Company’s Remuneration Policy. 4. To re-elect Andrew Watkins as a Director of the Company. 5. To re-elect Dr Jerome Booth as a Director of the Company. 6. To re-elect Rita Dhut as a Director of the Company. 7. To re-elect Jamie Skinner as a Director of the Company. 8. To re-appoint Ernst & Young LLP as Auditor to the Company, to hold office from the conclusion of this meeting until the conclusion of the next Annual General Meeting at which accounts are laid before the Company. 9. To authorise the Directors to fix the remuneration of the Auditor until the conclusion of the next Annual General Meeting of the Company. 10. To approve the Dividend Policy included in the Annual Report for the year ended 30 June 2025. 11. To approve an increase in the Company's Investment Policy limit from 12% to 15% to invest in gross assets (calculated at the time of investment) in unquoted companies with a Significant Presence in India. 12. That the Directors be and are hereby generally and unconditionally authorised in accordance with section 551 of the Companies Act 2006 (the “Act”) (in addition to any subsisting authorities to the extent unused) to exercise all the powers of the Company to allot up to 34,298,378 ordinary shares of 1 penny each in the capital of the Company (“Ordinary Shares”) (equivalent to 20% of the Ordinary Shares in issue at the date of this notice of Annual General Meeting), such authority to expire (unless previously varied, revoked or renewed by the Company in general meeting) at the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting of the Company to be held in 2026 or, if earlier, on the expiry of 15 months from the passing of this resolution, save that the Company may, at any time prior to the expiry of such authority, make an offer or enter into an agreement which would or might require the allotment of shar es in pursuance of such an offer or agreement, and the Directors may allot Ordinary Shares in pursuance of such offer or agreement as if such authority had not expired. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 83 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 84 Notice of Annual General Meeting (continued) Special Resolutions 13. That, subject to the passing of Resolution 12 above, the Directors be and are hereby empowered (pursuant to sections 570 and 573 of the Act) to allot Ordinary Shares and to sell Ordinary Shares from treasury for cash pursuant to the authority referred to in Resolution 10 above as if section 561 of the Act did not apply to any such allotment or sale, such power to expire (unless previously varied, revoked or renewed by the Company in general meeting) at the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting of the Company to be held in 2026 or, if earlier, on the expiry of 15 months from the passing of this resolution, save that the Company may, at any time prior to the expiry of such power, make an offer or enter into an agreement which would or might require equity securities to be allotted or sold from treasury after the expiry of such power, and the Directors may allot or sell from treasury equity securities in pursuance of such an offer or an agreement as if such power had not expired. 14. That the Company be and is hereby generally and unconditionally authorised in accordance with section 701 of the Act to make market purchases (within the meaning of section 693(4) of the Act) of its Ordinary Shares, provided that: a) the maximum number of Ordinary Shares hereby authorised to be purchased shall be 25,706,634 (representing 14.99% of the Company’s issued Ordinary Share capital (excluding shares held in treasury) at the date of this notice of Annual General Meeting); b) the minimum price (exclusive of any expenses) which may be paid for an Ordinary Share is 1 penny; c) the maximum price (excluding expenses) which may be paid for an Ordinary Share is not more than the higher of: (i) 5% above the average of the mid-market values of the Ordinary Shares for the five business days before the purchase is made; and (ii)the higher of the price of the last independent trade and the highest current independent bid for the Ordinary Shares; d) the authority hereby conferred shall expire at the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting of the Company in 2026 or, ifearlier, on the expiry of 15 months from the passing of this resolution, unless such authority is renewed prior to such time; and e) the Company may make a contract to purchase Ordinary Shares under the authority hereby conferred prior to the expiry of such authority, which will or may be executed wholly or partly after the expiration of such authority and may make a purchase of Ordinary Shares pursuant to any such contract. 15. That a general meeting of the Company other than an Annual General Meeting may be called on not less than 14 clear days’ notice, provided that this authority shall expire at the conclusion of the Company’s next Annual General Meeting after the date of the passing of this resolution. NSM Funds (UK) Limited Company Secretary 8 October 2025 46-48 James Street, London W1U 1EZ 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 84 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 85 Notes to the notice of Annual General Meeting Website address 1. Information regarding the meeting, including the information required by section 311A of the Companies Act2006, is available from www.ashokaindiaequity.com. Entitlement to attend and vote 2. Only those holders of Ordinary Shares registered on the Company’s register of members at close of business on 8 December 2025 or, if this meeting is adjourned, at close of business on the day two days (excluding nonworking days) prior to the adjourned meeting, shall be entitled to attend and vote at the meeting. Appointment of Proxies 3. Members entitled to attend, speak and vote at the meeting (in accordance with note 2 above) ar e entitled to appoint one or more proxies to attend, speak and vote in their place. If you wish to appoint a proxy please use the Form of Proxy enclosed with this document or follow the instructions at note 6 below if you wish to appoint a proxy through the CREST electronic proxy appointment service. In the case of joint members, only one need to sign the Form of Proxy. The vote of the senior joint member will be accepted to the exclusion of the votes of the other joint members. For this purpose, seniority will be determined by the order in which the names of the members appear in the register of members in respect of the joint shareholding. The completion and return of the Form of Proxy will not stop you attending and voting in person at the meeting should you wish to do so. Aproxy need not be a member of the Company. You may appoint more than one proxy provided each proxy is appointed to exercise the rights attached to a different share or shares held by you. If you choose to appoint multiple proxies use a separate copy of the Form of Proxy (which you may photocopy) for each proxy, and indicate after the proxy’s name the number of shares in relation to which they are authorised to act (which, in aggregate, should not exceed the number of Ordinary Shares held by you). Please also mark the box to indicate that the proxy instruction is one of multiple appointments being made. All forms must be signed and returned in the same envelope. 4. You can appoint the Chairman of the Meeting, or any other person, as your proxy. If you wish to appoint someone other than the Chairman, cross out the words ‘the Chairman of the Meeting’ on the Form of Proxy and insert the full name of your appointee. 5. You can instruct your proxy how to vote on each resolution by marking inside the ‘For’ and ‘Against’ boxes with an ‘X’ as appropriate (or entering the number of shares which you are entitled to vote). If you wish to abstain from voting on any resolution please mark the box which is marked ‘Vote Withheld’ with an ‘X’. It should be noted that a vote withheld is not a vote in law and will not be counted in the calculation of the proportion of votes ‘For’ and ‘Against’ a resolution. If you do not indicate on the Form of Pr oxy how your proxy should vote, he/she can exercise his/her discretion as to whether, and if how so how, he/she votes on each resolution, as he/she will do in respect of any other business (including amendments to resolutions) which may properly be conducted at the meeting. A company incorporated in England and Wales or Northern Ireland should execute the Form of Proxy under its common seal or otherwise in accordance with Section 44 of the Companies Act 2006 or by signature on its behalf by a duly authorised office or attorney whose power of attorney or other authority should be enclosed with the Form of Proxy. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 85 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 86 Notice of Annual General Meeting (continued) Appointment of Proxy 6. You can vote either: • by logging on to www.investorcentre.co.uk/eproxy and following the instructions; • by completing a hard copy form of proxy that accompanies this annual report. The form of proxy must be received by Computershare Investor Services PLC, The Pavilions, Bridgwater Road, Bristol BS99 6ZY by no later than 11am on 8 December 2025; or • in the case of CREST members, by utilising the CREST electronic proxy appointment service in accordance with the procedures set out below. Appointment of Proxy through CREST 7. CREST members who wish to appoint a proxy or proxies through the CREST electronic proxy appointment service may do so for the meeting to be held on the above date and any adjournment(s) thereof by using the procedures described in the CREST Manual. CREST Personal Members or other CREST sponsored members, and those CREST members who have appointed a voting service provider(s), should refer to their CREST sponsor or voting service provider(s), who will be able to take the appropriate action on their behalf. In order for a proxy appointment or instruction made using the CREST service to be valid, the appropriate CREST message (a ‘CREST Proxy Instruction’) must be properly authenticated in accordance with Euroclear UK & International Limited’s specifications and must contain the information required for such instructions, as described in the CREST Manual. The message, regardless of whether it constitutes the appointment of a proxy or an amendment to the instruction given to a previously appointed proxy, must, in order to be valid, be transmitted so as to be received by the Company’s agent (ID: 3RA50) by the latest time(s) for receipt of proxy appointments specified in the notice of meeting. For this purpose, the time of receipt will be taken to be the time (as determined by the timestamp applied to the message by the CREST Applications Host) from which the Company’s agent is able to retrieve the message by enquiry to CREST in the manner prescribed by CREST. After this time any change of instructions to a proxy’s appointee through CREST should be communicated to the appointee through other means. CREST members and, where applicable, their CREST sponsors or voting service providers should note that Euroclear UK & International Limited does not make available special procedures in CREST for any particular messages. Normal system timings and limitations will therefore apply in relation to the input of CREST Proxy Instructions. It is the responsibility of the CREST member concerned to take (or, if the CREST member is a CREST personal member or sponsored member or has appointed a voting service provider(s), to procure that his CREST sponsor or voting service provider(s) take(s)) such action as shall be necessary to ensure that a message is transmitted by means of the CREST system by any particular time. In this connection, CREST members and, where applicable, their CREST sponsors or voting service providers are referred, in particular, to those sections of the CREST Manual concerning practical limitations of the CREST system and timings. The Company may treat as invalid a CREST Proxy Instruction in the circumstances set out in Regulation 35(5)(a) of the Uncertificated Securities Regulations 2001. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 86 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 87 All messages relating to the appointment of a proxy or an instruction to a previously appointed proxy, which are to be transmitted through CREST, must be lodged at 10 :45am on 8 December 2024 in respect of the meeting. Any such messages received before such time will be deemed to have been received at such time. In the case of an adjournment, all messages must be lodged with Computershare no later than 48 hours before the rescheduled meeting. Appointment of a proxy through Proxymity 8. If you are an institutional investor you may be able to appoint a proxy electronically via the Proxymity platform, a process which has been agreed by the Company and approved by the Registrar. For further information regarding Proxymity, please go to www.proxymity.io. Your proxy must be lodged no later than 48 hours before the time of the Annual General Meeting, in order to be considered valid. Before you can appoint a proxy via this process you will need to have agreed to Proxymity’s associated terms and conditions. It is important that you read these carefully as you will be bound by them and they will govern the electronic appointment of your proxy. Proxymity will then contract with your underlying institutional account holder directly to accept their vote instructions through the platform. Termination of proxy appointments 9. In order to revoke a proxy instruction you will need to inform the Company. Please send a signed hard copy notice clearly stating your intention to revoke your proxy appointment to Computershare, Investor Services PLC, The Pavilions, Bridgwater Road, Bristol, BS996ZY. In the case of a member which is a company, the revocation notice must be executed under its common seal or otherwise in accordance with section 44 of the Companies Act 2006 or by signature on its behalf by an office or attorney whose power of attorney or other authority should be included with the revocation notice. Once a proxy has been lodged, it can be amended up to the meeting. If you attempt to revoke your proxy appointment but the revocation is received after the time specified in note 7 above then, subject to the paragraph dir ectly below, your proxy will remain valid. Completion of a Form of Proxy will not preclude a member from attending and voting in person. If you have appointed a proxy and attend the meeting in person, your proxy appointment will be automatically terminated. If you submit more than one valid proxy appointment in respect of the same Ordinary Shares, the appointment received last before the latest time for receipt of proxies will take precedence. Nominated Persons 10. If you are a person who has been nominated under section 146 of the Companies Act 2006 to enjoy information rights: • You may have a right under an agreement between you and the member of the Company who has nominated you to have information rights (Relevant Member) to be appointed or to have someone else appointed as a proxy for the meeting. • If you either do not have such a right or if you have such a right but do not wish to exercise it, you may have a right under an agreement between you and the Relevant Member to give instructions to the Relevant Member as to the exercise of voting rights. • Your main point of contact in terms of your investment in the Company remains the Relevant Member (or,perhaps, your custodian or broker) and you should continue to contact them (and not the Company) regarding any changes or queries relating to your 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 87 Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust plc Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2025 88 Notice of Annual General Meeting (continued) personal details and your interest in the Company (including any administrative matters). The only exception to this is where the Company expressly requests a response from you. • If you are not a member of the Company but you have been nominated by a member of the Company to enjoy information rights, you do not have a right to appoint any proxies under the procedures set out in the notes to the form of proxy. Questions at the meeting 11. Under section 319A of the Companies Act 2006, the Company must answer any question you ask relating to the business being dealt with at the meeting unless: • answering the question would interfere unduly with the preparation for the meeting or involve the disclosure of confidential information; • the answer has already been given on a website in the form of an answer to a question; or • it is undesirable in the interests of the Company or the good order of the meeting that the question be answered. Issued Shares and total voting rights 12. As at the date of this Notice, the total number of shares in issue is 171,491,893 Ordinary Shares of 1p each and no shares are held in treasury. The total number of Ordinary Shares with voting rights is 171,491,893. On a vote by a show of hands, every holder of Ordinary Shares who (being an individual) is present by a person, by proxy or (being a corporation) is present by a duly authorised representative, not being himself a member, shall have one vote. On a poll every holder of Ordinary Shares who is present in person or by proxy shall have one vote for every Ordinary Share held by him. Communication 13. Except as provided above, members who have general queries about the meeting should use the following means of communication (no other methods of communication will be accepted): • Calls to the Computershare shareholder helpline on 0370 703 6077 cost no more than a national rate from any type of phone or provider. If in doubt you should check with your phone line provider as to the exact cost involved for you to call this number. Lines are open 8 :30am to 5 :30pm, Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays; or • in writing to Computershare Investor Services PLC, The Pavilions, Bridgwater Road, Bristol, BS99 6ZZ. You may not use any electronic address provided either in this notice of meeting or in any related documents (including the Form of Proxy for this meeting) to communicate with the Company for any purposes other than those expressly stated. 17745 Ashoka Annual Report pg57-88.qxp_Layout 1 08/10/2025 09:30 Page 88
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