SEBI chief did not recuse herself from Adani probe, says board member

Securities and Exchange Board of India chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch did not recuse herself from the market regulator’s investigation into alleged stock manipulation by the Adani Group, a SEBI board member told Scroll on the condition of anonymity.

The board member said Buch, in fact, oversaw SEBI’s Adani probe “because it was ordered by the Supreme Court”.

This contradicts SEBI’s official statement that Buch had “recused herself in matters involving potential conflicts of interest”, and opens up the possibility that the chairperson violated several SEBI regulations.

In March 2023, the Supreme Court had tasked SEBI with investigating allegations made by Hindenburg Research that Adani Group had used opaque offshore entities to route funds into India to manipulate the stock prices of its companies. The market regulator is yet to complete the probe.

On August 10, Hindenburg Research alleged the tardiness was because Buch and her husband had “hidden stakes” in the same offshore entities linked to the Adani Group that were under investigation. “We find it unsurprising that SEBI was reluctant to follow a trail that may have led to its own chairperson,” the American firm said.

Dismissing the allegations as “character assassination”, the Buchs said the investments were made two years before Madhabi joined SEBI and were redeemed in 2018. Buch became a whole-time...

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