Nearly a year after Hindenburg Research, a U.S.-based short-seller, published a report accusing the Adani Group of manipulating share prices, the Supreme Court has rejected the transfer of the investigation to a special investigation team or the CBI. Instead, the court has instructed the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the country's market regulator, to finalize its inquiry into two pending cases within three months. The Supreme Court's decision came in response to multiple petitions seeking a court-monitored or CBI investigation into Hindenburg's allegations.
One petitioner based the case on a report from the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), a global network of investigative journalists. The OCCRP report accused the Adani Group of directing investments into publicly traded stocks through 'opaque' funds. Notably, one of OCCRP's donors is an organization founded by controversial American billionaire George Soros, who, in February of the previous year, suggested that PM Modi would need to address concerns raised by investors and parliamentarians regarding the Adani controversy. The court emphasized that unverified reports from third-party organizations cannot be treated as conclusive evidence.
Despite opposition allegations of SEBI's lackadaisical investigation, the Supreme Court has expressed confidence in the regulator. The Hindenburg and OCCRP reports have not deterred the U.S. government from participating in an Adani project through one of its agencies. In November of the preceding year, it was announced that the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation would invest $553 million in Colombo West International Terminal Pvt Ltd, a consortium involving Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd and two Sri Lankan entities. The responsibility now lies with SEBI to conclude its probe within the stipulated timeline and counter attempts by detractors to undermine its credibility
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