Hindenburg report: SC to hear SEBI plea seeking time extension for probe

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday will hear the pleas on the Adani-Hindenburg row, filed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) seeking to extend the time to conclude the investigation in the Hindenburg report by a period of 6 months.

The bench led by Chief Justice of India Dr Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud and also comprising Justices PS Narsimha and JB Pardiwala will hear the matter on Friday almost two months after it had asked market regulator and an experts' panel to probe the matter.

On March 2, the apex court had directed the capital market regulator SEBI to investigate any violations of securities law by the Adani Group in the wake of the Hindenburg report, which led to a massive wipeout of more than USD140 billion of the Adani Group's market value.

SEBI application seeking an extension of time has been opposed by the petitioner, Vishal Tiwari.

In an application moved before the Supreme Court, SEBI submitted that keeping in view the forgoing circumstances, it would take further time to arrive at verified findings and conclude the investigation.

SEBI, in the application also submitted that for ascertaining possible violations related to misrepresentation of financials, circumvention of Regulations and/or fraudulent nature of transactions in respect of 12 suspicious transactions mentioned herein above, given the complexity of the matter, SEBI in the normal course would take at least 15 months for completion of the investigation of these transactions, but is making all reasonable endeavours to conclude the same within six months.

"SEBI, in the forgoing circumstances, most respectfully submits that in order to enable SEBI to conduct a proper investigation and arrive at verified findings, it would be just, expedient and in the interest of justice that this Court may be pleased to extend the time to conclude the investigations as directed in the common order dated 02.03.2023, by at least 6 months," SEBI said.

It had also ordered the setting up of a six-member committee headed by former apex court judge Justice A M Sapre for the assessment of the extant regulatory framework.

The apex court had set up a panel to look at providing protection to investors.

The Expert Committee is headed by Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre, a former judge of the Supreme Court of India along with other five members which include -- retired judge Justice J P Devadhar, OP Bhatt, KV Kamath, Nandan Nilekani and Somashekhar Sundaresan.

"SEBI has not expressly referred to an investigation into the alleged violation of the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Rules 1957 which provide for the maintenance of minimum public shareholding in a public limited company, and similarly, there may be various other allegations that SEBI must include in its investigation," the court had noted during the last hearing of the case.