Cong ups ante over SEBI row, levels more conflict of interest allegations against Madhabi Buch

The Congress on Tuesday claimed that SEBI chairperson Madhabi Buch had a 99 per cent stake in a firm when it provided consultancy services to the Mahindra and Mahindra Group and her husband received Rs 4.78 crore as income from the conglomerate while she was adjudicating cases of the same group.

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh asked whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi was aware that Buch owns 99 per cent of Agora Advisory Private Limited and is receiving significant fees from listed entities, including Mahindra and Mahindra.

The Mahindra and Mahindra Group dismissed the allegations as ''false and misleading in nature''. The group categorically stated that it had not at any point requested SEBI for any preferential treatment. ''We maintain the highest standards of corporate governance,'' a spokesperson of the Mahindra and Mahindra Group said.

Putting out a fresh set of ''revelations'' on the issue of conflict of interest involving the SEBI chairperson, Ramesh said on X, ''Our questions are directed pointedly at the non-biological PM who appointed her in the first place -- Is the Prime Minister aware that Madhabi Buch owns 99 per cent of Agora Advisory Private Limited and is receiving significant fees from listed entities, including Mahindra & Mahindra?'' What kind of consultancy services does Agora Advisory Private Limited provide, and are they financial in nature and is the prime minister aware of Buch's ties to a conflicted entity, he asked.

''Is the Prime Minister aware that Ms. Madhabi Puri Buch's spouse is receiving a substantial income from M&M Limited after his retirement?'' Ramesh asked.

Earlier, at a press conference at the AICC headquarters here, Congress' media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said the recent Hindenburg report had alleged that SEBI Chairperson Buch held 99 per cent shares in a company called 'Agora Advisory Private Limited'.

Agora Advisory is a private entity incorporated on May 7, 2013 and it claims to provide various types of advisory or consultancy services, Khera said.

''Although, in her response, Madhabi Buch had claimed that the two consulting firms set up by her in Singapore and India -- one of which is Agora Advisory Private Limited in India -- became 'immediately dormant on her appointment with SEBI', the reality is that as of March 31, 2024, she still owns 99 per cent stake in the Indian entity which has been actively providing advisory/consultancy services till date,'' Khera said.

''This isn't just a case of willful concealment; it's a case of willful lying. In my last press conference, I had mentioned that it is not merely a conflict of interest, it is a case of corruption. Today's revelations prove that it is not just corruption -- it is a criminal conspiracy, absolutely brazen and shameless in its execution,'' he alleged.

Khera said Buch's ''99 per cent stake'' with Agora Advisory Private Limited leads to the questions that which all companies were taking consultancy or advisory services from Agora Advisory Private Limited and why.

''Were any of them under SEBI's scanner? Today, we have found the missing pieces of this puzzle,'' Khera claimed.

In 2016-17, 2019-2020, to as late as 2023-24, as a whole time member of SEBI and later as its chairperson, Buch received a total of Rs 2.95 crores through Agora Advisory Private Limited with 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 being the exception years, the Congress leader said.

The list of companies that availed consultancy service from Agora Advisory Private Limited -- Mahindra and Mahindra Limited, Dr. Reddy's, Pidilite, ICICI, Sembcorp and Visu Leasing and Finance, he said.

''All of the above are listed companies that are regulated by SEBI. Any income that Buch's 'Agora Advisory Private Limited' received from them amounts to conflict of interest and violates Section 5 of SEBI's Code on Conflict of Interest for Members of the Board,'' he said.

''Strangely, of the total 2.95 crores received by Agora Advisory Private Limited, 2.59 crores has come from one entity alone -- the Mahindra & Mahindra Group...If this was not shocking enough, the SEBI Chairperson's husband - Mr. Dhaval Buch received 4.78 Crores as income in a personal capacity from the Mahindra & Mahindra Group,'' he alleged.

This comes at a time when his wife, as a whole time member of SEBI, was adjudicating cases of the same group, Khera alleged.

''The year of settlements and the year of receipt of income by Dhaval Buch serendipitously coincide,'' Khera added.

In its statement, the Mahindra and Mahindra Group said it hired Dhaval Buch in 2019 specifically for his expertise in supply chain and sourcing, soon after he retired as Unilever's Global Chief Procurement Officer.

''He has spent most of his time at Bristlecone, a subsidiary which is a supply chain consulting company. Mr. Buch is currently on the Board of Bristlecone. He joined Mahindra Group almost three years before Ms. Madhabi Puri Buch was appointed as SEBI Chairperson,'' the Group said.

Compensation has been specifically and only for Buch's supply chain expertise and management acumen, based on his global experience at Unilever, it said.

The Mahindra and Mahindra Group also said that none of the five SEBI orders or approvals referenced in the allegations are relevant and three out of the five do not pertain to the company or any of its subsidiaries.

''One was a fast-track rights issue, which did not require any approval from SEBI. One was an order was issued in Mar 2018, well before Mr. Dhaval started working with the Mahindra Group,'' the company said.

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