The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Monday told the Supreme Court that all claims that the market regulator has been investigating the Adani Group since 2016 are “factually baseless” and one must not jump to “premature and wrong conclusions” in the case.

In an affidavit filed in the Apex court, SEBI said that no listed company of the Adani Group was among the list of 51 companies that it had investigated for issuing of Global Depository Receipts or GDRs.

According to the affidavit, filed in response to a plea claiming that SEBI had been investigating the Adani group since 2016 and had opposed a six-month extension to its ongoing probe, the market regulator clarified that the ‘investigation’ “referred to in paragraph 5 of the reply affidavit has no relation and/or connection to the issues referred to and/or arising out of the Hindenburg Report.”

It further said that matter pertains to the issuance of GDRs by 51 Indian listed companies which the SEBI was investigating, adding that no listed company of Adani Group was part of the aforesaid 51 companies.

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The SEBI said that after the completion of the investigation, appropriate enforcement actions were taken. Hence, the claims that the SEBI is investigating the Adani Group since 2016 are “factually baseless.”

The regulator said the six-month extension is to ensure that a thorough investigation is carried out keeping in mind the interest of investors and the securities market.

The Supreme Court had on March 2, directed the SEBI to investigate violations by the Adani Group, if any, before and after the release of the damning Hindenburg report.

The SEBI had been asked to file a report within two months, however, on April 29, the regulator filed for a six-month extension to complete the investigation.

Adani Group endured over $120 billion in market losses- nearly half of the conglomerate’s estimated value—since the damning report released by US short-seller Hindenburg Research.

In its critical report, Hindenburg Research accused the Adani Group of indulging in improper use of offshore tax havens and stock manipulation while also raising concerns about high debt and the valuations of seven listed Adani companies.

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The Supreme Court said it can grant the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) an extension of three months to finish the investigation into allegations made by American short-seller Hindenburg in their report of alleged manipulation in Adani Group stocks. 

The apex court said it cannot grant 6 months which SEBI had asked for and said the regulatory body should be pro-active in its investigation.

The Court asked SEBI to prepare a team and granted time till mid-August to submit the final report. The Supreme Court said SEBI cannot take as long a time as it wants and said it can grant a 3-month period to complete the probe.

The Court reserved its order for May 15, Monday. The Bench that heard the matter was led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and comprised Justice PS Narasimha and Justice JB Pardiwala.

On March 2, the Supreme Court had ordered an investigation into violations, if any, of the securities law by the Adani Group after a bloodbath at the stock market following the Hindenburg report. The Adani Group suffered a loss of more than USD140 billion after the claims.

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The apex court had ordered the investigation to SEBI, which regulates the capital market in the country, and had also constituted a six-member probe committee headed by retired SC judge Justice AM Sapre.

During the hearing, the CJI-led bench said the Justice Sapre committee had submitted its probe. SEBI had filed an application last month seeking extension in the time provided to it to probe the matter by six months.

In the application, SEBI mentioned that 12 transactions that were mentioned in the Hindenburg report requires rigorous investigations, which in the normal course need 15 months to complete, but looking at the situation, they would require at least 6 months to complete the probe.

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Senior Opposition leader and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has come out in support of the embattled Adani Group, saying that the damning report published by US-based short seller Hindenburg Research against the conglomerate “seems targeted.”

In an interview, Pawar said that the Adani issue was blown out of proportion in the Parliament which led to a complete washout of the second leg of the Budget Session as hardly any business was conducted.

The senior leader said that whenever such an issue is given too much importance, the cost is borne by the country’s economy and as such it seems the report against the Adani Group was “targeted”, adding that it seems that a single individual business group of a country was targeted to further an agenda.

In complete contrast to his other Opposition allies, including the Congress, who have been adamantly demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Adani issue, the veteran politician in an interview with NDTV said that he does not agree with other allies on this matter.

Pawar said the Supreme Court had already ordered a probe into the Hindenburg report by setting up a committee consisting of a retired apex court judge, an economist, an administrator and an expert—who have been directed to conduct an inquiry within a specified time frame.

He added that the JPC probe had no significance anymore since the Supreme Court has ordered an inquiry and cannot be swayed unlike a JPC which would consist majorly of ruling party members, and as the probe is being asked against the ruling party itself, a parliamentary probe has a lesser chance of finding the truth.

On being asked what the intent of Congress was behind constantly pushing for a JPC probe, Pawar said he wasn’t certain about his ally’s intent but perhaps they wanted the issue to stay in the media limelight as a JPC probe’s proceedings would be reported daily unlike the Supreme Court committee’s inquiry.

Pawar claimed that perhaps someone wants to bury the truth by making issue fester for months.

The NCP supremo also voiced his disagreement with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s “Adani-Ambani” way of targeting large business conglomerates, saying that it was “meaningless” and reminded him of the “Tata-Birla” narrative of the past.

Opposition led by the Congress have been demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the damning Hindenburg report that led to rout in shares of Adani Group since its release in January this year.

Adani Group endured over $120 billion in market losses- nearly half of the conglomerate’s estimated value—since the damning report released by US short-seller Hindenburg Research.

In its critical report, Hindenburg Research accused the Adani Group of indulging in improper use of offshore tax havens and stock manipulation while also raising concerns about high debt and the valuations of seven listed Adani companies.

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The Delhi Police, Wednesday, foiled a planned march by Opposition parties to the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) office in the national capital to push for their demand for a probe into the Adani row.

Reports said that a march by leaders of 18 Opposition parties to the probe agency’s office, which started from the Parliament today afternoon, was foiled by the police who put up blockades and deployed a massive contingent of personnel to stop the rally.

According to a statement, the Opposition leaders had planned the march to the ED office to push for an investigation into the Adani issue and its alleged connection with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The leaders were also protesting the alleged “misuse” of central agencies by the BJP regime against its political opponents.

However, the protesting leaders called off the march and returned to the Parliament after they were unable to move ahead. The Opposition leaders said they’ve sought an appointment with ED and will release a joint complaint letter soon.

Speaking to media after the march was foiled, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge told reporters lamented a force of 2,000 policemen was deployed to stop 200 people from leading a peaceful march. He alleged that the ruling regime wants “to suppress our voice” … “and then they talk about democracy.”

Kharge, reffering to BJP’s demanding an apology from Rahul Gandhi over his remarks in the UK said: “If someone talks about these things in a debate, a seminar, they are called anti-national.”

Notably, Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress and Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party, did not join the march.

Opposition led by the Congress have been demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the damning Hindenburg report that led to rout in shares of Adani Group since its release in January this year.

Adani Group endured over $120 billion in market losses- nearly half of the conglomerate’s estimated value—since the damning report released by US short-seller Hindenburg Research.

In its critical report, Hindenburg Research accused the Adani Group of indulging in improper use of offshore tax havens and stock manipulation while also raising concerns about high debt and the valuations of seven listed Adani companies.

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The Supreme Court on Thursday ordered SEBI to complete the probe into the Adani-Hindenburg row within two months. The Top Court also set up an independent experts committee which will be headed by its retired judge Abhay Manohar Sapre.

The other members of the panel include Nandan Nilekani, KV Kamath, OP Bhat, JP Devdhar, and advocate Somasekhar Sundaresan who have been appointed by a bench comprising CJI DY Chandrachud, Justice PS Narasimha, and Justice JB Pardiwala.

The Apex Court observed that the cases concern the loss of investor wealth over the past few weeks due to a massive decline of Adani group companies following the Hindenburg Research report asked SEBI to examine if there was a violation of market regulations, short-selling norms or stock price manipulation. On February 10, the Court directed the SEBI to suggest measures that could be implemented to protect Indian investors from market volatility.

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On February 17, the Supreme Court decided to constitute an expert committee to inspect if the regulatory mechanism needed to be strengthened to protect Indian investors from market volatility showed in the Hindenburg Research report on Adani Group.

Earlier, the bench had refused to accept the names put forth by the Central Government in a sealed cover for inclusion in the proposed committee. The Top Court had said it will select the experts and maintain full transparency as it would amount to a government-constituted committee if they take names given by the government.

Released on January 24, the Hindenburg Research report claimed “brazen accounting fraud” and “stock manipulation” by the Gautam Adani-led group.

Although the report was rejected by the conglomerate as unresearched and maliciously mischievous, it sparked a massive roar and political debates on social media which led to the firm losing over $120 billion in days and forcing the cancellation of a Rs 20,000 crore secondary share sale.

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Citing the need to maintain “full transparency”, the Supreme Court, Friday, turned down a sealed cover suggestion from the Centre on a proposed panel of experts to strengthen regulatory measures for the stock market in the wake of the recent rout in the shares of the Adani Group.

A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala, told the Centre that it will not accept the sealed cover suggestion because the apex court wants to maintain full transparency in the interest of the investors.

Taking into account the Adani Group share crisis, the Supreme Court had on February 10, said the interests of investors in the country need to be protected against market volatility while also directing the Centre to consider setting up panel of domain experts headed by a former judge to look into strengthening the regulatory measures.

Adani Group has endured over $120 billion in market losses- nearly half of the conglomerate’s estimated value—since the damning report released by US short-seller Hindenburg Research last month.

Hindenburg Research published a report last month, accusing the Adani Group of indulging in improper use of offshore tax havens and stock manipulation while also raising concerns about high debt and the valuations of seven listed Adani companies.

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The group has denied the allegations, saying the short-seller’s narrative of stock manipulation has “no basis” and stems from an ignorance of Indian law, adding that it has always made the necessary regulatory disclosures.

However, the short-seller hit back with a scathing response titled “Fraud cannot be obfuscated by nationalism or a bloated response that ignores every key allegation we raised,”.

Hindenburg Research accused the Adani Group of holding back India’s progress by draping itself in the Indian flag while systematically looting the nation.

On February 2, Thursday, the National Stock Exchange (NSE) put Adani Ports, Adani Enterprises, and Ambuja Cements under additional surveillance measure (ASM) framework, thus requiring 100 precent margin to trade in their shares.

The Adani Group, led by billionaire chairman Gautam Adani—who himself has faced a massive dip in personal fortune and dropped out of the Forbes top 10 rich list—cancelled its fully subscribed Rs 20,000 crore Follow-On Public Offering (FPO) and returned money to its investors.

The Adani crisis also put the Prime Minister in the firing zone as Opposition parties have levelled allegations of a nexus between Gautam Adani meteoric rise since Narendra Modi’s election to the nation’s top post in 2014. However, PM Modi hasn’t directly issued a response instead resorting to taking snide jibes at his political opponents without naming anyone.

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The downfall of the billionaire Gautam Adani-led Adani Group will weaken Prime Minister Narendra Modi and pave the way for “a democratic revival” in India, US billionaire George Soros has said.

In his speech ahead of the Munich Security Conference, Soros said that even though PM Modi is silent on the subject when questioned by the Opposition, he will, however, eventually have to answer questions from foreign investors and in the Parliament.

The billionaire investor, observed that this will “significantly weaken” PM Modi’s stranglehold on India’s federal government and “open the door to push for much-needed institutional reforms.”

George Soros, who has a net worth of about $.8.5 billion, is the founder of the Open Society Foundations, which gives grants to groups and individuals that promote democracy, transparency and freedom of speech.

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Soros added that he expected a “democratic revival” in India, naïve as it may sound.

Calling Soros a “designated economic war criminal”, Union minister Smriti Irani lashed out at the billionaire, dubbing his comments as an “attack on India that would not be tolerated” and called upon Indians to unitedly respond to “foreign powers who try to intervene in India’s democratic processes.”

A damning report by US short-seller Hindenburg Research late last month, sparked a rout in the shares of the Adani Group that wiped out more than $120 billion of the conglomerate’s market value and caused a massive drop in the personal fortunes of its Chairman Gautam Adani, who dropped out from the Forbes Top 10 rich list.

The Adani crisis also put the Prime Minister in the firing zone as Opposition parties have levelled allegations of a nexus between Gautam Adani meteoric rise since Narendra Modi’s election to the nation’s top post in 2014. However, PM Modi hasn’t directly issued a response instead resorting to taking snide jibes at his political opponents without naming anyone.

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Billionaire Gautam Adani-led Adani Group, who faced a massive rout in shares over the past month due to a damning report by US short-seller Hindenburg Research, is mulling to repay a $500 million bridge loan facility which the conglomerate had taken last year to purchase controlling stakes in cement companies ACC Ltd and Ambuja Cements Ltd.

According to a report by the Economic Times, the embattled group is looking to repay the bridge loan with cash this month.

The report, citing people in the know, said that the loan—which had a six-month tenor—was part of a larger $5.25 billion financing package, backed by Barclays, Deutsche Bank and Standard Chartered.

According to the report, the financial syndicate lending to Adani Group also includes DBS, MUFG, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp, First Abu Dhabi Bank, Intesa and Mizuho.

The ET report comes a day after the Adani Group, in its latest calm nervous investors after the recent collapse in shares, said companies face no material refinancing risk or near-term liquidity issues.

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Adani Group has endured over $120 billion in market losses- nearly half of the conglomerate’s estimated value—since the damning report released by US short-seller Hindenburg Research last month.

Hindenburg Research published a report last month, accusing the Adani Group of indulging in improper use of offshore tax havens and stock manipulation while also raising concerns about high debt and the valuations of seven listed Adani companies.

The group has denied the allegations, saying the short-seller’s narrative of stock manipulation has “no basis” and stems from an ignorance of Indian law, adding that it has always made the necessary regulatory disclosures.

However, the short-seller hit back with a scathing response titled “Fraud cannot be obfuscated by nationalism or a bloated response that ignores every key allegation we raised,”.

Hindenburg Research accused the Adani Group of holding back India’s progress by draping itself in the Indian flag while systematically looting the nation.

On February 2, Thursday, the National Stock Exchange (NSE) put Adani Ports, Adani Enterprises, and Ambuja Cements under additional surveillance measure (ASM) framework, thus requiring 100 precent margin to trade in their shares.

The Adani Group, led by billionaire chairman Gautam Adani—who himself has faced a massive dip in personal fortune and dropped out of the Forbes top 10 rich list—cancelled its fully subscribed Rs 20,000 crore Follow-On Public Offering (FPO) and returned money to its investors.

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Business conglomerate Adani Group– whose shares were routed over the past few weeks due to the fallout of a scathing report by the Hindenburg Research—has hired the services of New York-based law firm Wachtell to fight the damning allegations leveled by the US-based short-seller.

As per reports, the Adani Group has recruited top lawyers at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz as the conglomerate seeks help to deal with the recent crisis it’s mired in due to the short-seller’s report.

Adani Group has endured over $120 billion in market losses- nearly half of the conglomerate’s estimated value—since the damning report released by US short-seller Hindenburg Research last month.

Hindenburg Research published a report last month, accusing the Adani Group of indulging in improper use of offshore tax havens and stock manipulation while also raising concerns about high debt and the valuations of seven listed Adani companies.

The group has denied the allegations, saying the short-seller’s narrative of stock manipulation has “no basis” and stems from an ignorance of Indian law, adding that it has always made the necessary regulatory disclosures.

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However, the short-seller hit back with a scathing response titled “Fraud cannot be obfuscated by nationalism or a bloated response that ignores every key allegation we raised,”.

Hindenburg Research accused the Adani Group of holding back India’s progress by draping itself in the Indian flag while systematically looting the nation.

On February 2, Thursday, the National Stock Exchange (NSE) put Adani Ports, Adani Enterprises, and Ambuja Cements under additional surveillance measure (ASM) framework, thus requiring 100 precent margin to trade in their shares.

The Adani Group, led by billionaire chairman Gautam Adani—who himself has faced a massive dip in personal fortune and dropped out of the Forbes top 10 rich list—cancelled its fully subscribed Rs 20,000 crore Follow-On Public Offering (FPO) and returned money to its investors.

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The Supreme Court will hear a petition seeking an investigation into the allegations levelled in the scathing report by US short-seller Hindenburg Research that led to a rout in the shares of the Adani Group.

The plea, filed by Advocate Vishal Tiwari, seeks apex court to issue directions to the Centre to constitute a committee monitored by a retired Supreme Court judge to inquire and investigate into the Hindenburg Research report.

On Thursday, Advocate Tiwari mentioned the matter for urgent listing before a bench consisting of  Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala and headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud. He told the bench that a separate plea filed on the issue is scheduled to be listed for hearing on February 10, urging them to also hear his petition against billionaire Gautam Adani-led conglomerate. The CJI agreed to hearing to the petition.

The lawyer said the Hindenburg report has “tarnished the image of the country and caused loss” and seeks directions to set up a special committee to oversee the sanction policy for loans of over Rs 500 crore given to big corporates.

Last week, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed in the Supreme Court by Advocate Manohar Lal Sharma sought probe against Hindenburg Research and prosecution of its founder Nathan Anderson.

Advocate Sharma’s PIL seeks action against Hindenburg Research and its founder Nathan Anderson for “defrauding innocent investors” of the Adani Group and sought compensation for the said investors.

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In the petition, Advocate Sharma has asked the top court to issue directions to the Central government for launching an investigation against the short-seller and its founder in India and outside, and prosecute them for forgery under section 420 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) read with section 15HA of the SEBI Act.

Advocate Tiwari said the petition portrays the “drastic condition and fate of people” when there is a situation of share fall in the securities market due to various reasons.

Tiwari said that people who had invested their entire saving in the Adani stocks suffered the most due to the crash and investors face a colossal loss due to rout in all 10 Adani stocks whose market value has halved after the damning report.

The PIL claimed that the authorities haven’t taken any concrete steps despite a “massive attack being perpetrated” on the country’s economy.

The plea further said that ultimately it’s the public’s money which went down the drain and as such the respondents including -the Centre, the Reserve Bank of India and the Securities and Exchange Board of India, among others,- are answerable and there’s need for a strict concern for mitigating of such loans with a clear process and sanction policy for such high stake loan

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