The Adani Group: FM says experts, and regulators seized of the matter
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: Expressing confidence in India’s regulators and experts, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said they are very experienced and are seized of the matters relating to the Adani Group.
“I will not disclose here what the government will be saying in the court…India’s regulators are very, very experienced and they are experts in their domain. The regulators are seized of this matter and they are on their toes as always, not just now,” she told reporters on Saturday after her customary post-Budget address to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)’s board.
Her remarks came while she was replying to a question on the observations of the Supreme Court on public interest litigations (PILs) alleging exploitation of investors and “artificial crashing” of the Adani Group’s stocks.
Concerned over protecting the interests of Indian investors, the apex court on Friday favored creating a robust mechanism to regulate the stock market and sought views of the Centre and market regulator SEBI on PILs alleging exploitation of innocent investors and “artificial crashing” of the Adani stocks.
A bench headed by Chief Justice D. Y. Chandrachud also told Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta to convey to the officials of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) that it was not “planning any witch hunt.”
The apex court sought inputs from the finance ministry and others on various issues, including making the regulatory mechanism robust to protect the interests of investors in the market where capital flow is seamless in modern times.
The Adani Group stocks crashed on the bourses after a little-known US-based Hindenburg Research made a litany of allegations, including fraudulent transactions and share-price manipulation, against the leading Indian business conglomerate on January 24.
The Adani Group rejected the charges as lies, saying it complies with all laws and disclosure requirements, and that the Hindenburg claims were a “calculated attack on India.”
