‘All allegations are false, malicious, and motivated’

Buchs said the charges were based on their IT returns, in which ‘all matters had been fully disclosed’.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI) chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch and her spouse Dhaval Buch, facing a host of allegations of conflict of interest, have rejected all allegations in a fresh statement issued on Friday (September 13, 2024) on their personal capacity. 

Issuing point by point rebuttal to all the specific allegations accompanied by statements issued by companies [clients of Mr. Buch] named by Congress and other reports, the couple insisted that “all the allegations made are false, incorrect, malicious and motivated.”

“The allegations themselves are based on our Income Tax Returns. In other words, all these matters are a part of our income tax returns in which all these matters have been fully disclosed and taxes have been duly paid,” they said.

“Shockingly, our income tax returns clearly have been obtained by adopting fraudulent means and illegally. This is a clear breach of not only our right to privacy (which is a fundamental right) but also a violation of the Income Tax Act,” they emphasised.

They said the facts, transparently reflected in their income tax returns, had been twisted deliberately to create a false narrative.

“Further, going by the pattern of creating a false narrative at periodic intervals, it appears that the allegations are being made in instalments, only to keep the pot boiling,” they said.

Stating that if the objective had been to arrive at the truth rather than to malign individuals and institutions with distortions of facts, they said they wonder why all allegations would not be brought out, in public, at one go. 

“We would then have given all the facts at one go. If, however, this false narrative is motivated, to achieve some other objective, then the possibility of further allegations being made repeatedly in instalments in the future may not be ruled out,” they said.

Stressing that they are upright and honest professionals and have led their respective professional lives with transparency and dignity, “earning an unblemished record”, they said though everyone can see a clear pattern emerging to distort and twist the facts, they are confident that they would be able to “demolish all such motivated allegations even in future, while reserving our right to take appropriate legal remedy as we may be advised.”

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“The fact that so far, allegations are being made with new falsehoods each time, in instalments, makes it clear that the only intention is to keep distorting facts, to keep making false allegations again and again to build a false narrative. Clearly, arriving at the truth is not the objective,” they said. 

On the rental income matter pertaining to a Wockhardt Ltd. subsidiary they said, “The property was leased out in the normal course. As it turned out subsequently, the lessee happened to be an associate of Wockhardt, a listed company which had come under investigation.”

“Madhabi has not dealt with any files related to Wockhardt. Given the all-India remit of SEBI’s responsibilities, which encompass hundreds of investigations, thousands of surveillance alerts, hundreds of approvals, and hundreds of orders annually, the Chairperson is usually not even aware of specific cases, as they are handled in the normal course by other designated officials as per Delegation of Powers which have always been in place,” they said.

“In this context, even an allegation of conflict is not only defamatory, false and vexatious, but is clearly malicious and motivated.

SEBI operates under a clear and well-defined Delegation of Powers, ensuring that investigations are handled in accordance with established procedures,” they said in the statement.

“For investigations, various powers are vested in senior officials such as Chief General Managers, Executive Directors, or Whole-Time Members. Accordingly, no investigation files go to the Chairperson,” they said.

“It is highlighted that the rental agreement for the property in question was concluded in accordance with standard market practices and this property jointly owned by Madhabi and Dhaval is leased and the rental from the same is declared and tax paid accordingly,” they added.

“A simple internet search and analysis would show that the rental income from the property was completely in line with market rates. The assertion that the rental rates were “off market” are patently false,” they further said.