Madhabi Buch traded in listed securities while in possession of unpublished price sensitive info: Congress

Congress accuses SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Buch of trading in securities with sensitive information and investing in Chinese firms.

Upping the ante over the conflict-of-interest row involving SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Buch, the Congress on Saturday (September 14, 2024) claimed that she traded in listed securities while in possession of unpublished price-sensitive information and has been investing in Chinese firms at a time when India is facing geopolitical tensions with China.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh pointed to “fresh conflict of interest allegations” against Mr. Buch, claiming that she, as a whole-time member and later as the SEBI chairperson, traded in listed securities worth ₹36.9 crore.

The Congress attack comes a day after Mr. Buch said that she had made all necessary disclosures and complied with recusal guidelines in dealing with companies such as Mahindra Group that hired her husband, as she rejected allegations of impropriety as “false, malicious and motivated”.

Mr. Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch in a joint statement – the second since U.S.-based short seller Hindenburg Research charged her of not being motivated enough to act on allegations against the Adani group due to conflict of interest – also addressed issues raised by the opposition Congress over receiving payments from her previous employer the ICICI Bank while being a whole time member of the SEBI.

The statement said Mr. Buch never dealt with any file involving Agora Advisory and Agora Partners – the advisories where she held 99% and continued to earn revenue even after she joined the market regulator body SEBI in 2017.

Posing questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mr. Ramesh asked if he is aware that the SEBI chairperson has been trading in listed securities while in possession of unpublished price sensitive information.

“Is the PM aware that Madhabi Buch has made high value investments outside India? If yes, what is the date of this investment and date of disclosure?” Mr. Ramesh asked.