Levelling more conflict of interest allegations against Madhabi Puri Buch, the chairperson of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the Congress claimed that she received rental income from Carol Info Services Ltd, a company affiliated with Wockhardt Ltd, that the market regulator was investigating for various cases, including that of insider trading.
In a statement, Congress says, "Between 2018-2024, Ms Buch as a whole-time member (WTM) and later as the chairperson of SEBI had been receiving rental income amounting to Rs2.16 crore from Carol Info Services. Wockhardt was under SEBI's investigation for various cases, including that of insider trading during 2023."
"This is an outright case of corruption that invokes conflict of interest violating section 4, 7, & 8 of SEBI's 2008 code on conflict of interests for members of board," it says.
Further, it says that previous chairpersons of SEBI have gone to great lengths to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest, both in their roles as the market regulator and in their previous positions. "For instance, M Damodaran sold his 50 shares in State Bank of India (SBI) when he took over UTI in 2001, and CB Bhave recused himself from all matters involving the National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL), where he was formerly chairman. In contrast, Ms Buch merely transferred her investments to her spouse, which raises concerns about credibility. Why was there no effort to verify whether Ms Buch would follow these established standards? Or was this lack of scrutiny part of a mutually beneficial arrangement?"
In a post on X, Jairam Ramesh, general secretary in-charge communications of Congress, says the question really had to be asked of prime minister (PM) Narendra Modi and no one else on how much more evidence was needed to show the collapse of transparency and integrity, as far as the capital markets regulator was concerned.
"By the National Stock Exchange (NSE)'s data, there are now 10 crore Indians with unique permanent account numbers (PANs), who have some form of investment in this market. Don't they deserve better? Why does he not move? What is he afraid of?" he asks.
Meanwhile, pharmaceutical company Wockhardt has denied the allegations about rent payment by Carol Info Services. It also denied its connection with some orders passed by the market regulator in relation to Wockhardt.
In a regulatory filing, it says, "We categorically deny these allegations and state that these allegations are completely baseless and misleading. The company has acted and continues to act in compliance with all applicable laws."
Separately, the Congress party says that SEBI's investigation into the Adani group is a 'brazen attempt to bypass regulations' and still languishing, and the market regulator has much to explain.
In
a post on X, Mr Ramesh alleged that two Mauritius-based foreign portfolio investors (FPIs), Lotus Global Investments and LTS Investment Fund, have petitioned the securities appellate tribunal (SAT), seeking urgent relief from complying with SEBI's new norms for foreign investors.
"These are the very same FPIs who stand accused of participating in the Adani Group's brazen attempt to bypass SEBI's regulations and amass benami stakes in its own companies. These are the very firms that benefitted from SEBI's removal of the requirement to identify the 'ultimate beneficial owner' of offshore funds, a decision that it was forced under public pressure to reverse in June 2023 in a tacit admission of its guilt," he says.
