Govt says SEBI probing Hindenburg's charges against Adani group

New Delhi, March 13

The government on Monday said the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) had initiated a Supreme Court-monitored probe into the allegations made in a Hindenburg report against the Adani group, but declined to provide details of the outstanding amount citing the Reserve Bank of India Act that prohibits it from disclosing credit information.

Answering written questions in the Lok Sabha, the government was also short on providing details about action taken on the import of power generation and transmission equipment by the group and the controversial import of coal from Indonesia. It also said the government had not constituted any committee to investigate the Hindenburg allegations.

“The RBI has informed that under Section 45E of the RBI Act, credit information submitted by a bank shall be treated as confidential and not to be published or otherwise disclosed,” said Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman when asked about the details of credit exposure of various public sector banks and insurance companies to the Adani group of companies. “The large exposure framework limited the exposures to 20 per cent of the bank’s capital base. Banks also have a clear policy regarding the debt-equity ratio to ensure that promoters bring in equity funds proportionate to bank finance,” she said.