Adani-Hindenburg case verdict: SC grants Sebi 3 months for pending probes

The Supreme Court, on Wednesday, said that there were no grounds for taking away the investigation of the Adani group of companies in the Hindenburg report from the markets regulator. It granted the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) three months to complete the investigation of two pending matters.

The Supreme Court also refused to interfere in the Sebi's probe.

A bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra had reserved the judgement on November 24. It noted that there were no grounds to discredit Sebi's investigation.

On August 23 last year, Sebi had told the Supreme Court that it had completed the probe in all but two allegations against the Adani group and is still awaiting information from five tax havens on actual owners behind foreign investors investing in the conglomerate.

"The power to transfer investigation must be exercised in exceptional circumstances. Such powers cannot be exercised in the absence of cogent justifications," CJI Chandrachud said on Wednesday, as reported by Live Law.

On Wednesday, the apex court also said that the Centre and Sebi would look into whether Hindenburg Research violated any law on short-selling. If there is a violation, they may take any action in accordance with law.

On the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) report, released on August 31 last year, the Supreme Court said that it cannot be taken into account to doubt the investigation and findings by Sebi. CJI said that a "third-party organisation report without any verification cannot be relied upon as a proof".

Moreover, the court also said that media reports cannot be considered as conclusive evidence but only as inputs in such cases.