The Supreme Court today asked the Sahara Group to consider placing before it the details of "unencumbered" property to guarantee the protection of interest of around 2.3 crore investors who put in around Rs 17,400 crore in its two companies.

"You (Sahara Group) give us clear unencumbered property," a bench headed by Chief Justice S H Kapadia said while asking Sahara Group counsel to apprise the court on it within three weeks after taking instruction from the companies.

Sahara Group said it has given details of all properties, including the immovable properties, in the affidavit filed by it on January 4 and assured the bench that the interests of the investors are protected.

The apex court was hearing Sahara group's plea challenging the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) order directing its two companies to refund around Rs 17,400 crore to their investors.

The Tribunal's decision was stayed by the apex court which had on January 9 also admitted the appeal filed by the Sahara.

"We want the amount of the investors to be secured. You can also give a bank guarantee or list of the assets of the company," the bench, also comprising justices A K Ganguly and Swatanter Kumar, said.

The remarks were made by the bench when advocate Fali S Nariman and advocate Keshab Mohan, appearing for the Sahara Group, said the company has sufficient assets to ensure the protection of interests of the investors.

"Do you have immovable property enough to meet the liability vis-a-vis creditors," the bench wanted to know from Nariman who said there were three time more assets than the liability.

The group had earlier told the court that it has filed an affidavit explaining that it will protect the interests of 2.3 crore investors who have put in their money in Sahara India Real Estate Corporation (now known as Sahara Commodity Services Corporation Ltd) and Sahara Housing Investment Corporation.

The bench had, on November 28, 2011, also asked the companies to place before it their 2010-11 balance sheets and statements of accounts for November 2011.

"Net worth of the companies particularly assets against which liability has been created, financial statements including balance sheets of 2010-11 and statements of accounts of the companies of November 2011 shall be mentioned in the affidavit," the bench had said.

The apex court had earlier issued notices to the central government and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) seeking their response on Sahara's plea challenging SAT's October 18, 2011 order, directing it to refund the money raised through optionally fully convertible debentures (OFCD) to investors within six weeks.

It extended till January 8 the time limit set by SAT which had passed the order on the Sahara group's appeal against SEBI's June order asking the group's firms to return the money, collected from investors through financial instrument OFCD, on the ground of violation of regulatory norms.

The stock market regulator had also restrained the two entities from accessing the securities market for raising funds till payments were made to the satisfaction of SEBI.

The two companies and its promoter Subrata Roy Sahara, and the directors -- Vandana Bhargava, Ravi Shankar Dubey and Ashok Roy Choudhary -- were told jointly and severally to refund the collected money.

The company had then approached the Supreme Court which asked it to approach the Tribunal.

While dismissing the appeal, SAT had held that the market regulator has jurisdiction over such fund-raising schemes.