Mumbai: The automaker major Mahindra Group has refuted the latest salvo against Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) chief Madhabi Buch as "false and misleading." It rubbished Congress' charge of conflict of interest involving Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch.
Madhabi Buch had previously disclosed that her consulting firms became dormant upon her joining SEBI, with all necessary disclosures made to the authorities.
The Mahindra Group rejected the latest allegations by the Congress which accused the Buchs of earning crores from the Mahindra Group, Dr. Reddy's, ICICI and three other listed companies.
“Dhaval Buch was hired for his expertise in supply chain management and not in connection with SEBI-related matters and the compensation was based on his global experience. Several of the SEBI orders and approvals predate Dhaval Buch’s tenure with the company,” clarified a senior executive of the automaker.
The Congress had raised fresh set of allegations on Tuesday against the SEBI chief claiming a conflict of interest involving her firm Agora Advisory Private Limited providing consultancy services to Mahindra Group and other major listed companies.
Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera questioned the SEBI chief's conflict of interest with 99% stake in Agora Advisory while her husband Dhaval got compensation of Rs Rs 4.78 crore from the Mahindra Group while she was adjudicating cases related to the conglomerate.
While Ms Buch had categorically denied any conflict of interest and had claimed that Agora Advisory had become dormant upon her SEBI appointment, Khera insisted the consultancy firm was actively providing services violating the SEBI code of conduct.
Meanwhile, the 1988 IIM- Ahmedabad alumini Ms Buch received support from the top business management B-school batchmates who issued a statement slamming the allegations against her. Her batchmates dismissed allegations against the market regulator's chief and said the narrative around her did not “ring true”.
