Since 2014, the market watchdog Sebi has been looking into alleged irregularities at the Adani Group that were reported by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). However, due to a lack of information, they have not made much progress.
The Bank of Baroda (BoB) branch in Dubai was contacted by the regulator shortly after it received a letter from DRI, and after a short period of time, BoB wrote to Sebi, claiming it was unable to release the data because of UAE restrictions. The information was not shared, despite follow-up action by Sebi, prompting it to take up the matter with the parent entity BoB, which, too, turned down the plea.
Sebi, the sources said, also took up the matter with RBI, requesting it to get BoB to part with the information, but did not make any headway. Even the regulatory agency in the UAE did not share the data, despite having an agreement with Sebi, prompting it to take up the issue with International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), an association of regulatory bodies.
Before being officially concluded last year, the investigations were carried out during the terms of at least two Sebi chiefs, according to sources. Questions about the function of the regulating body have been raised in a petition to the Supreme Court, and this matter is currently being heard.