SC refuses CBI probe against Adani Group

IN A REPRIEVE to Adani Group, the Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to transfer the investigation currently being carried out by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) or a special investigation team (SIT).

- RAJESH KURUP

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The verdict prompted Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani to tweet: "Truth has prevailed".

Stating that its power to enter the regulator's domain was "limited", the apex court asked Sebi to conclude its investigation into the allegations by US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research within three months.

The three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra dismissed all writ petitions filed in February 2023,raising concerns over the decline in investor wealth and volatility in the share market due to a fall in the share prices of the Adani Group companies.

"The court must refrain from substituting its own wisdom over the regulatory policies of Sebi. The scope of judicial review when examining a policy framed by a specialised regulator is to scrutinise whether it violates fundamental rights, any provision of the constitution, any statutory provision or is manifestly arbitrary," court said in its judgment.

The SC also said that "no valid grounds" were raised for the court to direct Sebi to revoke its amendments to foreign portfolio investors and listing regulations as the procedure followed in arriving at the current shape of the regulations does not suffer from irregularity or illegality.