(Image source from: Indiatvnews.com)
Gautam Adani, chairman of the Adani Group, expressed his appreciation for the recent Supreme Court decision regarding the Hindenburg controversy. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the Indian billionaire expressed his gratitude to those who supported him, stating that "the truth has prevailed." Adani also affirmed his commitment to contributing to India's growth and signed off with "Jai Hind." The Supreme Court, consisting of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, delivered their verdict on January 3 in response to multiple petitions that sought to investigate fraud allegations made against Adani Group by Hindenburg Research. During the reading of the judgment, CJI DY Chandrachud dismissed the petitioners' requests to transfer the case from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to a Special Investigation Team (SIT). The court upheld that SEBI had already concluded investigations in 20 of the 22 matters and instructed the regulatory body to complete the remaining two cases within three months.
The court is currently reviewing the PILs to determine if the Hindenburg report on short selling breaches any legal statutes, and if so, to take appropriate legal measures. Additionally, the court has advised the Centre and SEBI to consider the expert committee's recommendation in order to strengthen the regulatory framework.
A verdict on the PILs was delayed until November 24, 2023. The pleas asserted that the Adani Group, believed to have close ties to the Modi government, artificially inflated its share prices and experienced a significant decline in share value after the release of the Hindenburg Research short seller report.
In March 2023, the highest court instructed SEBI, the capital markets regulator, to investigate any violations of securities law committed by the Adani Group following the publication of the Hindenburg report. Furthermore, the court established a panel of experts, led by former top court judge Justice AM Sapre, consisting of six members.
In January 2023, Hindenburg Research, a US-based short seller, made allegations of accounting fraud, manipulation of stock prices, and improper utilization of tax havens against the Adani Group.
