Sebi Chief Buch Skips Summons, Meeting Postponed

Aakhir Tak – In Shorts

Sebi chief Madhabi Puri Buch skipped a meeting summoned by the Public Accounts Committee due to personal reasons. This led to the postponement of the review meeting by PAC chairperson KC Venugopal. BJP members criticized this decision as politically motivated and unilateral.

Aakhir Tak – In Depth

Sebi chief Madhabi Puri Buch skipped a review meeting called by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) today, citing “pressing reasons.” Following this development, PAC chairperson KC Venugopal postponed the meeting, leading to a war of words with BJP members, who accused him of taking unilateral decisions.

The PAC had summoned Buch for a review of Sebi amid allegations of conflict of interest raised by US-based short-seller Hindenburg, which she has vehemently denied. She has also faced accusations of holding an office of profit at ICICI Bank, a charge firmly rejected by the bank. The Congress party has sought her removal.

“In the first committee meeting itself, we decided to have a review of our regulatory bodies. We called a meeting today for the review of Sebi. We sent a notice to the concerned people. They sought an exemption from the meeting, which we refused. After that, she confirmed that she and her team would be present in front of the committee,” Venugopal told reporters.

BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad accused Venugopal of taking politically motivated decisions. Other NDA MPs present in the meeting approached Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla against Venugopal’s conduct, alleging that he was raising non-existent issues to defame the central government and destabilize the economy.

The PAC is responsible for overseeing the government’s accounts and the functioning of public undertakings. The decision to review regulatory bodies established by Act of Parliament has been added as a suo motu subject. The committee is expected to reschedule the meeting to a new date, but opposition moves are likely to face pushback from the BJP, which holds a majority in the panel.

Why Sebi is Under Opposition Attack

Sebi has been under sustained attack from the Congress and opposition parties following a report by US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research on “stock price manipulation” by the Adani Group. Last month, Hindenburg alleged that Sebi’s reluctance to act against the Adani Group might be linked to Buch’s stakes in offshore funds associated with the conglomerate. However, Buch has called these allegations “baseless.”

The Congress ramped up its attacks on Buch last month, alleging that she received an income of ₹16.80 crore between 2017 and 2024 from ICICI Bank after becoming a full-time member of the market regulator. While Buch has yet to respond to the charge, ICICI Bank has denied paying any salary or granting any ESOPs (Employee Stock Ownership Plans) to the Sebi chief after her retirement, other than her retiral benefits.

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