Agitated SEBI employees seek apology from regulator, removal of 'false and misleading' press release

A section of SEBI employees hasdemanded that the market regulator delete a 'false and misleading' press release and also issue a public apology. The demand comes a day after SEBI issued the press release denying claims of an unprofessional work culture levelled by some employees.

"The achievements of SEBI are the result of collective efforts, not the work of a solitary leader. The leadership must take responsibility for the current state of affairs and work towards fostering a respectful and dignified work environment, rather than dismissing legitimate concerns with false and misleading statements," read the document dated September 5.

"Therefore, we demand that the leadership withdraw the false and misleading PR immediately and issue a public apology," it added.

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What did the SEBIrelease claim?

Notably, a letter dated August 6 by the SEBI employees alleged that a toxic work culture was prevalent under the leadership of chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch.The issues, detailed in a letter titled 'Grievances of Sebi Officers-A Call for Respect,' highlighted several disturbing aspects of the work culture at SEBI.

In response, the market regulator denied the claims, citing high employee standards and condemning a few "external elements" behind employee protests.

“Junior officers have been receiving messages from external elements outside their group, effectively instigating them to go to the media, the (finance) ministry and the board, perhaps to serve their own purpose,” the five-page statement from SEBI read.

However, the SEBI employees said the PR was "misleading" as well as "riddled with factual inaccuracies".

SEBI has come under heavy scrutiny in recent weeks after US-based short seller, Hindenburg Research released a report, alleging that Buch had a conflict of interest while serving as the chief of the market regulator.

A SEBI board member last week revealed that Buchdid not recuse herself from the investigation launched into the alleged stock manipulation carried out by the Adani Group.

The member, speaking on condition of anonymity to the publication, stated that Buch oversaw SEBI’s Adani probe “because it was ordered by the Supreme Court”.

If Buch did indeed oversee the investigation, it contradicts the position taken by the market regulator when it released a statement stating that Buch had “recused herself in matters involving potential conflicts of interest”.

(With inputs from agencies)