Mumbai: The Bombay High Court, on Tuesday, granted relief to former SEBI chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch, BSE managing director Sundararaman Ramamurthy and four others, by staying a special court order to register an FIR against them for the alleged wrongful listing of a company on the stock exchange in 1994.
On Saturday, special court judge S E Bangar had passed these directions on the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB). Buch and the others had moved the High Court on Monday, praying for this order to be quashed.
Justice S G Dige of the High Court stayed the order and observed: “It appears that the trial court judge has passed the order mechanically without going into details and without attributing any role to the applicants (in this case SEBI or BSE officials).”
The single judge bench called the special court’s order ‘harsh’ and ‘unjust’, as none of the accused had held the positions in 1994. “Hence, no vicarious liability can be fastened on them,” Justice Dige added.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who appeared for the three full-time directors of SEBI submitted that the complaint was vexatious and vague, made by a habitual litigant on whom the High Court had earlier imposed a cost of Rs 5 lakh for filing a frivolous petition.
Senior advocate Amit Desai, appearing for Ramamurthy, submitted that the trial court judge did not seem to be aware that private complaints require prior sanction before the prosecution of public servants.
“In matters of this type, one has to be very careful. When you go after the preeminent market regulator and stock exchange, it has wide ramification, more in today’s times,” Desai submitted.
After hearing them, Justice Dige granted Buch and the others interim relief before adjourning the matter. It will come up for hearing again after four weeks.
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