AAP MP Sanjay Singh calls SEBI's Adani probe "baseless", urges Supreme Court action

Sanjay Singh. File Pic

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh on Sunday criticised SEBI's investigation into the Adani Group, calling it "baseless and irrelevant," and urged the Supreme Court to take action. His statement follows allegations made by US short-seller Hindenburg Research against SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch.

Singh asserted that SEBI's investigation was flawed due to the involvement of SEBI Chief Madhabi Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch, who allegedly invested nearly USD 10 million in the same dubious funds under investigation.

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At a press conference, Singh said, "The entire investigation by SEBI is baseless and irrelevant, and the information and report presented in the Supreme Court regarding Adani's matters hold no significance. The Supreme Court should take note of this."

"(Hindenburg) new report claims that SEBI Chief Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch invested nearly USD 10 million in the same dubious funds they were supposed to investigate. In other words, their money was invested in the very corruption they were supposed to be investigating," Singh added.

"The case was taken to the Supreme Court, which instructed SEBI to conduct the investigation. SEBI began its probe and filed a report in May 2023, which was quite ridiculous. SEBI is now saying they are investigating 13 cases but admit they don't know how far the investigation will go, describing it as directionless. The new Hindenburg report explains why," Singh said.

The Hindenburg report, released on August 10, alleged that SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband had stakes in the same obscure offshore entities involved in the Adani money siphoning scandal. Hindenburg Research, which SEBI has taken enforcement action against, accused the Buchs of character assassination in response.

"We had previously noted Adani's total confidence in continuing to operate without the risk of serious regulatory intervention, suggesting that this may be explained through Adani's relationship with SEBI Chairperson, Madhabi Buch," US short seller Hindenburg had alleged on Saturday.

Hindenburg's report claimed that the Buchs' investments were in the same Bermuda and Mauritius funds used by Vinod Adani, which were found in the complex structure of the scandal. The report is based on documents from a whistleblower and investigations by other entities.

"What we hadn't realized: the current SEBI Chairperson and her husband, Dhaval Buch, had hidden stakes in the exact same obscure offshore Bermuda and Mauritius funds, found in the same complex nested structure, used by Vinod Adani," the report by the US hedge firm said.

Hindenburg Research said it has made the new allegations based on documents provided by a whistleblower and investigations carried out by other entities.

In January 2023, Hindenburg published a report accusing the Adani Group of financial irregularities, leading to a significant drop in the company's stock price. The group at the time had rubbished these claims.

The Hindenburg report alleged stock manipulation and fraud by the conglomerate. The case is related to the allegations (part of a report by Hindenburg Research) that Adani had inflated its share prices. After these allegations were published, there was a sharp fall in the shares of various Adani group companies' stocks.

In January 2024, the Supreme Court refused to transfer the probe into the allegations of stock price manipulation by the Adani group to an SIT and had directed market regulator SEBI to complete its probe into two pending cases within three months.

Earlier this year, the SC also dismissed a plea seeking to review the verdict that had sought an investigation by the market watchdog SEBI in the Adani-Hindenburg case.