Mumbai, August 11: US short-seller Hindenburg Research’s allegations against SEBI chief, Madhabi Puri Buch, kicked up a storm after the firm claimed that the SEBI chief held stake in Adani-linked funds. Though the SEBI chief in her defence, termed the allegations as “baseless”, the matter dominated headlines across the media even on a day when the markets in India are closed. With the SEBI chief, Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch facing the allegations, a post by an astrology handle “Jupiter Astrology” predicted more trouble for the SEBI chief.
“T-0674…@SEBI_India Chairman, Madhabi Puri Buch will resign or sacked soon. Her date of birth is Jan 12, 1965. As per Nadi method she is in for major trouble @HindenburgRes @gautam_adani @AdaniOnline @madhabibuch,” read the post by the astrologer who is known to make bold predictions.
The handle “Jupiter Astrology” is run by Sundar Balakrishnan, a professor of Astrology at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan (BVB).
In fact, the handle had also predicted more trouble for the Adani group in previous handles before the latest Hindenburg Research report.
In the past, he is known to have correctly predicted several events such as Tamil Nadu BJP chief Annamalai losing the 2024 general elections apart from other predictions.
What Are Allegations Made By Hindenburg Research Against SEBI Chief?
The Hindenburg Research event alleged that it suspects SEBI’s unwillingness to act against Adani group may be because of its head Madhabi Puri Buch had stakes in offshore funds linked to the conglomerate.
What Did Madhbai Puri Buch Say About Allegations?
The allegations have been slammed by the SEBI head as “baseless”. In a joint statement, Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband strongly denied the allegations, stating, “In the context of allegations made in the Hindenburg Report dated August 10, 2024, against us, we would like to state that we strongly deny the baseless allegations and insinuations made in the report. The same are devoid of any truth.”
“Our life and finances are an open book. All disclosures as required have already been furnished to SEBI over the years. We have no hesitation in disclosing any and all financial documents, including those that relate to the period when we were strictly private citizens, to any and every authority that may seek them. Further, in the interest of complete transparency, we would be issuing a detailed statement in due course”.
What Did Adani Say About Latest Allegations?
The Adani group rubbished the claims and said it never had any commercial relations with Buch.
“The latest allegations by Hindenburg are malicious, mischievous and manipulative selections of publicly available information to arrive at pre-determined conclusions for personal profiteering with wanton disregard for facts and the law. We completely reject these allegations against the Adani Group which are a recycling of discredited claims that have been thoroughly investigated, proven to be baseless and already dismissed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in March 2023,” stated the statement by Adani group.
Politics Over The Matter
The latest Hindenburg Research claims ignited yet another round of Congress led Opposition vs the government battle over the issue.
The Congress said that the revelations only reinforced its demand for setting up a “joint parliamentary committee to investigate the full scope of the Adani mega scam” while the Trinamool Congress said the SEBI chairperson must resign.
“This raises fresh questions about Gautam Adani’s two 2022 meetings in quick succession with Ms Buch shortly after she became SEBI chairperson. Recall that SEBI was supposedly investigating Adani transactions at the time,” Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge also made a demand for a “Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) inquiry” adding that “it is imperative to investigate this massive scandal.”
