Court orders FIR against former SEBI chief Madhabi Puri Buch, 5 others in alleged market fraud

A special court in Mumbai on Saturday directed the Anti-Corruption Bureau in Mumbai to register a first information report against Madhabi Puri Buch, the former chairperson of Securities and Exchange Board of India, and five other officials in connection with alleged stock market fraud and regulatory violations, reported PTI.

The direction by special Anti-Corruption Bureau court judge Shashikant Eknathrao Bangar came on a complaint claiming that officials at the SEBI allowed the listing of a company that did not meet the prescribed norms, thereby facilitating market manipulation and corporate fraud.

“The allegations disclose a cognizable offense, necessitating an investigation,” Bangar was quoted as having said by The Indian Express. “There is prima facie evidence of regulatory lapses and collusion, requiring a fair and impartial probe.”

Apart from Buch, three whole-time members of the SEBI, and Bombay Stock Exchange Chairman Pramod Agarwal and Chief Executive Officer Sundararaman Ramamurthy, have been named in the complaint.

The judge said that the “inaction” of SEBI officials and law enforcement agencies should be probed.

The Anti-Corruption Bureau was directed to register an FIR under the Prevention of Corruption Act, the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act and the Indian Penal Code. The court stated it will monitor the probe and sought a status report...

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