New Delhi: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Monday moved the Supreme Court seeking an extension of 15 days to complete the ongoing probe into the allegations made by US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research against the Adani Group.
The market regulator SEBI, in its fresh application, has informed the top court that out of the said 24 investigations/examinations, 17 are complete and approved by the competent authority in accordance with SEBI’s extant practice and procedures.
SEBI sought an extension of 15 days’ time for filing the report on conclusion of the probe, or any other period as the apex court may deem fit.
On July 11, the apex court had asked the SEBI about the status of its ongoing investigation into the Hindenburg-Adani controversy. The apex court said the probe has to be concluded expeditiously by August 14.
The Supreme Court had then observed that it would certainly like to know under what circumstances the rules were amended to remove the definition of opaque structures, after advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for a petitioner seeking probe into Hindenburg allegation against the Adani Group, contended that SEBI could be prevented from going into the layers of transactions because of the amendments which have been made, for instance to the definition of beneficial owners.
In an application, filed in the Adani-Hindenburg controversy case, market regulator SEBI has told the Supreme Court that changes made in Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPI) regulations in 2018 and 2019 effectively tightened the disclosure requirement related to beneficial owners (BOs).
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In its interim report, the Supreme Court-appointed expert committee had said that it saw no evident pattern of manipulation in Adani’s companies and there was no regulatory failure. However, the committee cited several amendments the SEBI made between 2014-2019 that constrained the regulator’s ability to investigate, and its probe into alleged violation in money flows from offshore entities has drawn a blank.
The Supreme Court-appointed committee -- headed by retired judge AM Sapre probing the Adani-Hindenburg controversy -- had cited the change in rules as one factor, which made it difficult for the SEBI to identify beneficiaries of offshore funds which allegedly invested in the companies of the Adani Group.
