Sebi sets up high-level committee to review conflict of interest provisions

Former IAS & CVC Pratyush Sinha to chair the six-member high-level committee

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Wednesday announced the formation of a high-level committee (HLC) chaired by Pratyush Sinha, a retired IAS officer and former Chief Vigilance Commissioner (CVC). The committee will conduct a thorough review of Sebi’s provisions governing conflict of interest, disclosures, and related obligations for its officials and board members, including matters concerning property, investments, and liabilities.

 

Injeti Srinivas, former secretary of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and ex-chairman of the IFSCA (Gift City regulator), has been appointed as the committee’s vice chairman.

 

The decision to establish the HLC was first revealed during Sebi’s board meeting in March, prompted by growing concerns over potential conflicts of interest involving board members.

 

The six-member panel also includes prominent figures such as Uday Kotak, founder and director of Kotak Mahindra Bank; G Mahalingam, former Sebi whole-time member and RBI executive director; Sarit Jafa, former deputy comptroller and auditor general; and R Narayanaswamy, former professor at IIM Bangalore.

 

“The HLC will comprehensively review and recommend enhancements to the existing framework for managing conflicts of interest, disclosures, and related issues to uphold the highest standards of transparency, accountability, and ethical conduct among Sebi’s members and officials,” the regulator stated.

 

The committee is expected to submit its recommendations to the Sebi board within three months. Its mandate includes proposing frameworks for recusal policies, public disclosures, investment regulations, and digitisation and monitoring of records. Additionally, it will suggest mechanisms for the public to report concerns about conflicts of interest, and outline processes to investigate such complaints.

 

The initiative follows a tumultuous period for Sebi last year, when Hindenburg Research, a now-defunct short-seller, alleged conflicts of interest involving former Sebi Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch. The Opposition Congress further fuelled the controversy with claims of impropriety and undisclosed income sources. Buch and her husband have consistently denied these allegations.