SC judge recuses from Vedanta PIL; case to be heard by new Bench

A Supreme Court judge recused himself from hearing a PIL on alleged financial irregularities by Vedanta and HZL, the second recusal in the case, which will now go to a new bench

A Supreme Court judge on Friday recused himself from hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking regulatory action against Vedanta Limited, Hindustan Zinc Limited (HZL) and Vedanta Resources over alleged financial irregularities and governance lapses.

 

The case will now be listed before a different bench of the apex court. This is the second recusal in the matter, with another judge having stepped aside last week.

 

The PIL relies on a report by US-based Viceroy Research, which claimed that the Vedanta group engaged in practices such as large dividend payouts from listed Vedanta, inflated brand fee charges and loans extended for share purchases without disclosure of related-party transactions. It also alleged that HZL failed to disclose pending litigation and statutory dues.

 

The petition states that Viceroy Research submitted its findings to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), but no action was taken. The petitioner has sought directions for a detailed probe by these agencies into the alleged financial and regulatory violations.