Adani-Hindenburg Case: Will Appoint A Committee Of Our Own, Says Supreme Court

As the Adani-Hindenburg matter resumed in the apex court today, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta suggested the names of the committee members and its remit in a sealed cover to the bench, comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala. The matter has been reserved for orders by the Supreme Court.

In the last hearing, the Solicitor General had suggested that the remit of the committee to look into the regulatory mechanisms to protect the investors, and the names of the committee members must be given in a sealed cover to the court. It was argued that any unintentional message to investors could have an impact on the money flow in the country.

CJI Chandrachud responded, saying the court would rather not accept the sealed cover suggestions. "We will appoint a committee of our own to ensure complete transparency."

The CJI also declined to accept a suggestion made by Congress leader Jaya Thakur, who had also filed a petition, that a sitting judge of the apex court must be appointed on the committee to examine the issues. "The court will not allow a sitting judge to be on the committee; we don't have that."

The Adani-Hindenburg matter reached the top court earlier this month when two public interest litigation petitions were filed seeking a direction regarding allegations against the Adani Group. Soon after, another two petitions were filed by Congress leader Jaya Thakur and Anamika Jaiswal, and all four petitions were clubbed together.

Highlighting the Rs 10 lakh crore loss that the Adani Group’s investors have suffered, the apex court had earlier expressed concerns for the interests of the investors.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India submitted its reply before the court, saying that the existing regulatory regime is solidly built to ensure continued growth and development of the securities markets while also safeguarding investor interests.

It had emphasised that Indian markets are very resilient, and this is an isolated incident concerning a single group of companies that has no significant impact at a market-wide level or at a system-wide level that might warrant a review of the existing framework.