Adani-Hindenburg Issue: Won’t Accept Sealed Cover Suggestions, CJI Tells Centre

Chief Justice Chandrachud advocates meditation

New Delhi: The Central government’s strategy on the Adani-Hindenburg issue was questioned on Friday.

The Supreme Court, which was hearing petitions demanding an investigation into the US short sellers’ scathing report on Adani Group, said that it won’t accept sealed cover suggestions from the Centre.

“We want to ensure transparency. In case we take your suggestions from sealed cover, it automatically means the other party won’t know,” Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud stated.

“We want full transparency for the protection of investors. We will form a committee. There will be a sense of confidence in the court,” the CJI said during the course of the hearing.

Having agreed to hear the Adani-Hindenburg issue after four PILs were filed by lawyers ML Sharma and Vishal Tiwari, Congress leader Jaya Thakur and activist Mukesh Kumar, the Supreme Court bench – comprising CJI, Justices S Narasimha and JB Pardiwala — last week asked the Centre to consider setting up a panel of domain experts, headed by a former judge, to strengthen the market regulatory mechanism. The direction came in the wake of allegations of stock manipulation against Adani Group.

The Centre responded by submitting a note in a sealed cover to the top court, suggesting possible names of members who can be part of the committee. But it wasn’t accepted.

The CJI-headed bench on Friday reserved its order on the committee’s composition. The top court indicated it will constitute the committee after doing its own research.

“We can’t start with a presumption of regulatory failure,” the CJI said.