Adani-Hindenburg : Know The Members Of Expert Committee Constituted By Supreme Court To Review Regulatory Mechanism

The Supreme Court on Thursday constituted an expert committee to review the regulatory mechanism in the light of the Adani-Hindenburg issue. 

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justice PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala ordered that the expert committee will be headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre. The following are the members of the committee :

1. Mr. OP Bhat - former Chairman of the State Bank of India. Presently, independent director on the board of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC), Tata Steel Ltd and also Hindustan Unilever Ltd. (HUL).

2. Justice JP Devadhar - former judge of the Bombay high Court and former Presiding Officer of the Securities Appellate Tribunal.

3.  Mr KV Kamat - former chief of the New Development Bank of BRICS countries, and former the Chairman of Infosys Limited.

4. Mr.Nandan Nilekani - co-founder of Infosys, former Chairman of UIDAI.

5. Advocate Somasekhar Sundaresan. Supreme Court Collegium recently reiterated his  name for elevation as a Judge of Bombay High Court, overruling Centre's objections.

The remit of the committee shall be as follows :

a. To provide an overall assessment of the situation including the relevant causal factors which have led to the volatility in the securities market in the recent past.

b. To suggest measures to increase investor awareness.

c. To investigate whether there was regulatory framework in dealing with alleged violations of law pertaining to the securities market in relation to the Adani group or other companies.

d. To suggest measures to strengthen the statutory framework and regulatory framework and secure complaince with the existing framework for the protection of existing investors.

The SEBI Chairperson has been requested by the Court to provide all information to the committee. All agencies of the Union Government shall cooperate with the committee. The Committee is at liberty to seek recourse to external experts. The honorarium payable to the members of the committee shall be fixed by the Chairperson and shall be borne by the Union Government. The Secretary, Ministry of Finance, shall nominate a senior officer to act as a nodal officer to provide logistical support for the committee. All the expenses incurred in the work of the committee shall be defrayed by the Union Government.

The Committee is directed to furnish its report to the Supreme Court in a sealed cover within two months.

The Court has clarified that the constitution of the committee is not an adverse reflection on the regulatory agencies.

Also, the Court has directed the SEBI to complete its investigation in the Adani-Hindenburg issue within a period of two months and file a status report before the Court.The SEBI shall also inform the expert committee the action it has taken in furtherance of the directions as well as the steps taken as part of the ongoing investigation.

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