SEBI files fresh affidavit in SC in Adani VS Hindenburg case; clarifies that it files it to counter misinformation

New Delhi: The SEBI, filed a fresh affidavit in the Supreme Court on Wednesday and said that the affidavit was being filed by it to counter misinformation, as certain entities being attacking SEBI’s stand in the ongoing Adani VS Hindenburg case pending for adjudication in the SC.

The SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India), the market regulator of India, today, in its fresh 6-page affidavit, clarified it’s stand in the Supreme Court and said that the 2016 move was related to Global Depository Receipts (GDRs) and not related to any Adani group Company.

SEBI said that Adani group was not being investigated from 2016. The SEBI clarified this in a fresh affidavit following a political row.

SEBI has also submitted to the Apex Court that the current status of this Investigation has been submitted to the Expert Committee constituted by this Court.

SEBI has also submitted to the Top Court that in the context of Investigation into MPS norms, it has already approached 11 overseas Regulators under the Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MMOU) with International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO). Various requests for information were made to these Regulators. The first request to overseas Regulators was made as early as on October 06, 2020, the SEBI in its fresh affidavit filed today in the Supreme Court said.

SEBI submitted that it is the understanding of it that the root cause of the erroneous linkage of a 2016 matter to the Adani Group is as follows:

In 2016, SEBI passed an order pertaining to the issuance of GDRs by 51 Indian listed companies. No listed company of Adani Group was part of the aforesaid list of 51 companies, which has been specifically stated in our rejoinder of May 15, 2023 to the Supreme Court. However, there were some FPIs including Cresta Fund limited, Albula Fund Limited and APMS Fund Limited, the GDR relevant accounts of which, were frozen as a consequence of the 2016 order.

Thereby, SEBI clarified that this action was purely a consequence of the GDR matter and not related to any examination into any Adani Group company.

Now the matter would come up for hearing in July 11 in the Supreme Court.

UNI