The Supreme Court of India on Thursday charged the country's market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), to investigate whether the Adani group violated the securities acts and rules, and manipulated its shares.
The court has asked a six-member panel to submit its report within two months.
The six members include: Om Prakash Bhatt (Chairman, State Bank of India); Justice JP Devadhar; Kundapur Vaman Kamath (chairman of the National Bank of Financing Infrastructure and Development and former chief of the New Development Bank of BRICS countries); Nandan Nilekani (former chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India); and Somasekhar Sundaresan (securities and regulatory expert). The panel is to be headed by former Supreme Court Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre.
The three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud said the expert panel would assess the situation overall, including the factors that may have led to volatility in the securities market recentlu, and suggest measures to strengthen investor awareness.
The panel will also check whether the Adani Group had failed to disclose transactions with related parties and other relevant information that concerns related parties to SEBI according to the law.
Since Hindenburg Research made its allegations in January, Adani's shares have been in freefall. He was the world's third-richest person until early this year but he now has slipped to 32nd in the Bloomberg rich list.
The 60-year-old business tycoon welcomed the Supreme Court order and tweeted that "It will bring finality in a time-bound manner. Truth will prevail".