As the Ministry of Finance put up a notification inviting applications for the position of Chairperson of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the Congress party saw an opportunity to find joy in patting itself on the back for a routine bureaucratic transition.
In the notification dated 27th January 2025, The Ministry of Finance, through the Department of Economic Affairs (Financial Markets Division), has advertised for the post, “Government of India invites applications from the eligible candidates for filling up the post of Chairman in Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), Mumbai.”
According to the ministry, the selected candidate will have the option to receive remuneration equivalent to the pay scale of a Secretary to the Government of India or a consolidated salary of Rs 5,62,500 per month. However, this consolidated salary does not include perks such as a government-provided house or vehicle. The ministry said that the deadline for submitting applications is 17th February 2025.
Congress declares itself as the winner of the “Buch battle”
Soon after the Ministry of Finance’s notification inviting applications for the post of SEBI chairperson was issued, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh claimed that this was a vindication of Congress’s “sustained, fact-based” campaign against outgoing SEBI chairperson Madhabi Buch.
“The Modi Govt. has just invited applications for the post of SEBI Chairperson. This is a vindication of the INC’s sustained, facts-based campaign that highlighted how severely compromised the present Chairperson has been. The INC hopes that the new Chairperson will protect the interests of crores of middle-class investors in the capital market, summon the courage to stand up to the Modani enterprise, and deal with all revelations of the transactions of the Adani Group without fear or favour,” Ramesh posted on X on Monday.
The Modi Govt. has just invited applications for the post of SEBI Chairperson. This is a vindication of the INC's sustained, facts-based campaign that highlighted how severely compromised the present Chairperson has been.
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) January 27, 2025
The INC hopes that the new Chairperson will protect the…
One Congress supporter “India with Congress” said, “GOI, has given a small Newspaper Advertisement inviting applications on or before Feb 17, 2025, in search of new SEBI Chairman. Narendra Modi surreptitiously wants to remove Madhavi Puri Buch so that no harm comes to his BFF Adani.”
Meanwhile, another X user said, “Overall three people were responsible for the bad performance of Economy and the market – Rbi Governor Das, Sebi Chairman – Buch and FM – Sitharaman. Two out of three are finally allowed to let go. It shows that the Govt is trying to undo the wrong behind the scenes. Today markets would recover on Madhuri Buch’s exit.”
Another one said, “Govt of India has given Newspaper Advertisement inviting applications for SEBI Chairman before Feb 17, 2025. Silently Madhavi Puri Buch will be sidelined and be saved by her PawPaw.”
Is the Finance Ministry’s notification for recruiting new SEBI chief a vindication of Congress’s smear campaign against Madhabi Buch?
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh and the party’s supporters are claiming that somehow the Ministry of Finance inviting applications for replacement of outgoing SEBI chairperson Madhabi Buch’s successor is a vindication of their campaign attacking her and demanding her resignation over alleged conflict of interest and financial misconduct.
Contrary to the assertions made by the Congress party, the recruitment notification for SEBI chairperson has been issued as Buch’s tenure comes to an end on 28th February 2025. It has nothing to do with Congress’s campaign targeting her or with any alleged financial misconduct. Thus, there is no question of any ‘vindication’ and it is only a continuation of Congress’s fertile imagination of making the Modi government quiver in its boots with their baseless allegations.
Ironically, the Congress party is pushing a narrative that somehow Madhabi Buch not getting an extension or the Finance Ministry issuing notification for appointing the next SEBI chief as ‘vindication’ of the party attacks on her based on the dubious Hindenburg hit-job against Buch.
It must be recalled that in August 2024, Hindenburg Research published a report that claimed that SEBI chief Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch had investments in an offshore firm used in the Adani money siphoning case. The report also alleged that the SEBI chairperson’s involvement showed a lack of transparency in the market regulator when it came to investigating the Adani group. The next day on 11th August, SEBI chief Madhabi Buch and her husband released a joint statement, calling the report baseless and saying that their financial records were an open book. OpIndia reported earlier that Hindenburg Research’s hit job on Madhabi Buch proved nothing about her supposed ties to any offshore funds connected with the Adani Group.
Despite this, the Congress party and the anti-BJP cabal had heavily relied on the Hindenburg report to attack Madhabi Buch and the Modi government. They claimed that somehow the SEBI chairperson’s integrity is compromised and the Central government was complicit in her alleged financial misconduct.
Things, however, turn even more interesting given the fact that in October last year, Buch was cleared of any wrongdoing following a probe since the investigation found nothing incriminating against her. And just months later, Hindenburg Research, the very source of the continuous attacks on Adani Group and Madhabi Buch, announced its closure. The US-based short-seller’s shutdown came just days after US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Breon Peace, who brought fraud and bribery charges against Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani and seven other executives, announced his resignation. Peace has been accused of having ties with regime change enthusiast and billionaire George Soros who has been vocal in his opposition to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Soon after Hindenburg Research announced its shutdown, its founder Nate Anderson (Nathan Anderson) was accused of colluding with hedge funds like Canada’s Anson Funds. It emerged that Anderson collaborated with Anson Funds to produce targeted reports. Now when the integrity of Hindenburg Research itself is questionable, there is no doubt that its reports targeting the Adani conglomerate or SEBI chief Madhabi Buch cannot be taken seriously or relied on to level corruption allegations against them. Thus forget vindication, Congress’s attacks on the SEBI chief, Adani Group and the Modi government deserve condemnation for using dubious reports by foreign entities for political motives.
