Amid the ongoing controversy surrounding the recent allegations by Hindenburg Research against Madhabi Puri Buch, the Chairperson of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad has accused the Congress and its allies of conspiring to bring about “economic anarchy” and “hatred against India”.
Prasad said that India remains a secure and stable market and it is SEBI’s duty to maintain its stability.
“After being rebuffed by the people of India, the Congress party, its allies and the ‘toolkit gang’ have conspired together to usher in economic anarchy and instability in India… Hindenburg report is released on Saturday, there is uproar on Sunday so the capital market is destabilized on Monday,” Prasad said in a press conference.
In his defence of the SEBI against Hindenburg’s claims, Prasad said that the US short-seller had not responded to a notice issued by SEBI in an earlier inquiry.
“When SEBI issued a notice against Hindenburg, after completing its entire inquiry in July, which was done under the supervision of the Supreme Court, then, without giving any answer in favour of its defence, they have made this attack, a baseless attack,” he added.
This criticism follows criticism from Opposition leaders who have targeted the BJP-led central government over Hindenburg’s allegations linking Buch to the Adani Group’s finances. Buch has dismissed these allegations as baseless.
The Congress has questioned her appointment as SEBI Chairperson and demanded her resignation in the wake of these damning allegations. The Congress also pushed for an immediate Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe what it terms the “Modani mega scam”.
Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera described SEBI as a “cosy club” for Gautam Adani, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Buch.
“What were they (BJP) doing when they were appointing Madhavi Buch as Chairperson of SEBI? Didn’t they know all these facts about Madhavi Buch’s investments in offshore companies owned by Adani? Is the Congress responsible for that conflict of interest? The BJP and the ruling party is responsible for not timely watching these conflicts of interest and appointing Madhavi Buch,” he added.
Hindenburg Research’s latest report, released on Saturday, claims that Buch and her husband hold stakes in obscure offshore funds allegedly linked to the Adani money siphoning scandal. Both Buch and her husband have firmly denied these allegations, asserting that their financial dealings are transparent.
This report by Hindenburg Research follows its previous explosive revelations from 18 months ago, which accused the Adani Group of “brazen stock market manipulation” and “accounting fraud”.
