Cong says Sebi chief Madhabi Puri earned crores from Mahindra & Mahindra, ICICI, others. Check 5 top details

Congress vs Madhabi Puri Buch: The Indian National Congress on Tuesday claimed that Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) chief Madhabi Puri Buch has earned crores from companies, such as Mahindra & Mahindra, Dr Reddy's and three others, said Congress leader Pawan Khera.

1. In a detailed note shared by the main opposition party, Khera said: "Agora Advisory Private Limited is owned by Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch. Following the Hindenburg report, Madhabi Puri Buch denied this association, claiming the company became dormant after she joined SEBI. However, she still holds a 99% stake in the company."

2. Khera, in a press conference in Delhi, said that contrary to her claim, Agora Private Limited continued to provide services & generated revenue of Rs 2.95 crore between 2016-2024. The Sebi chief had earlier said that advisory company (Agora) owned by her became dormant when she took office (Sebi).

3. The party further added that Agora had top clients such as Mahindra and Mahindra Limited, Dr. Reddy’s, Pidilite, ICICI, Sembcorp, Visu Leasing & Finance.Last month, Hindenburg Research published a report again that highlighted the operations of two consultancy companies run by Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband. These firms include Agora Partners, based in Singapore, and Agora Advisory, based in India.

4. The Congress said Madhabi's husband Dhaval Buch received Rs 4.78 Crores as income in a personal capacity from the M&M. "If this was not shocking enough, the SEBI Chairperson’s husband - Dhaval Buch received Rs 4.78 Crores as income in a personal capacity from the M&M. This is in addition to the Rs 2.95 crores received by ‘Agora Advisory Private Limited’ through its consultancy/advisory services," Khera said on Tuesday.

5. The Congress said Section 5 of SEBI's code on conflict of interest has been violated. It added that 88% of the Rs 2.95 crore received by Agora Advisory came from Mahindra.

It added: "This comes at a time when his wife, as a Whole Time Member of SEBI, was adjudicating cases of the same group."

The party also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the Sebi case. "Was no one courageous enough within the government to place these records before the PM? How did the PM not know what the SEBI chief was up to, or whether there was a nexus?" the Congress asked.

Khera said no action was taken against the SEBI chief may be due to fears of a domino effect on other stakeholders. The party continues to demand a Joint Parliamentary Committee for a detailed probe into the matter.

Madhabi Puri's response

While a response from the SEBI chairperson to the latest allegations is awaited, in an earlier response she had said that the two consulting companies set up by her during her stay in Singapore, one in India and one in Singapore, became immediately dormant on her appointment with SEBI.

“These companies (and her shareholding in them) were explicitly part of her disclosures to SEBI”, the statement had said.

Further, after Dhaval retired from Unilever in 2019, he started his own consultancy practice through these companies, it said, adding that “Dhaval's deep expertise in Supply Chain allowed him to work with prominent clients in the Indian industry. Thus, linking accruals in these companies to Madhabi's current government salary is malicious.”

“When the shareholding of the Singapore entity moved to Dhaval, this was once again disclosed, not just to SEBI, but also to the Singapore authorities and the Indian tax authorities,” it added.

Under attack

On September 2, 2024, allegations surfaced against Buch for potentially receiving income from ICICI Bank while serving as the chief of Sebi, thereby contravening regulatory conflict-of-interest standards.

Based on disclosed records, Khera asserted that Buch purportedly garnered close to Rs 17 crore in remuneration from ICICI Bank spanning the period between 2017 and 2024, leading to raised apprehensions regarding possible financial connections during her Sebi leadership.

The opposition intensified their critique by indicating that Buch had also acquired rental earnings from Carol Info Services Ltd, a firm associated with Wockhardt Ltd., a subject of ongoing Sebi scrutiny.

Opponents, notably the Congress party, have characterized these purported actions as a direct violation of ethical principles, with Khera even denouncing the situation as a clear instance of "out-and-out corruption."

While both ICICI Bank and Wockhardt rejected the accusations leveled by the Congress, Buch did not respond to the allegations.