A committee appointed by the Supreme Court has found no evidence of regulatory failure in relation to Adani Group’s stock rallies. The six-member panel stated that the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had “drawn a blank” in its investigation into allegations of violations in money flows from offshore entities into the conglomerate, but it noted a build-up in short positions ahead of the publication of a report by US-based short seller Hindenburg Research. The committee also called for an effective enforcement policy that is “coherent and consistent” with Sebi’s legislative position.
The committee could not conclude that there had been a regulatory failure on Sebi’s part regarding minimum public shareholding rules or related party transactions. The panel was headed by retired Supreme Court judge Justice AM Sapre and included OP Bhatt, KV Kamath, Nandan Nilekani and Somsekhar Sundaresan. Sebi has found 42 contributories to the assets under management of the 13 overseas entities holding Adani Group stocks, and has been pursuing various avenues to ascertain the same. The regulator has been suspicious that some public shareholders are fronts for the promoters of the companies.
