Centre shielded Adani, SEBI chief: Venugopal

Congress MP KC Venugopal on Monday accused the Centre of protecting Adani Group while alleging conflict of interest against Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) chairperson Madhabi Buch.

Speaking during a Lok Sabha debate on supplementary demands for grants, Venugopal said Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s “failure” to act decisively on it has not only tarnished the credibility of the government but also jeopardised the financial governance framework. “A joint parliamentary committee must probe the entire matter,” he demanded, alleging it was a government “by Adani, of Adani, for Adani.”

Venugopal alleged between 2017-2024, Buch received over Rs 16.4 crore from ICICI bank while serving as a Sebi official. “This was five times her salary from Sebi, presenting a blatant conflict of interest,” he said.

She received rental income from entities linked to a firm under Sebi probe, said Venugopal, who also heads the Public Accounts Committee. “What does it mean sir, Sebi is investigating the company and the chairperson is renting out property to entity linked to that company,” he said.

Venugopal also alleged that the Sebi chairperson traded in securities worth of Rs 36.9 crore while holding access to unpublished price-sensitive information which he said was a direct violation of Sebi code of ethics. She failed to disclose assets in Singapore and the US between 2017-21 despite being obligated to do so, he added.