New Delhi: Madhabi Puri Buch, the chairperson of SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India), has not been paid any salary since her retirement, ICICI bank said today, denying Congress's "office of profit" claims. The Congress had alleged earlier today that Ms Buch, who joined SEBI as a member in 2017 and subsequently became its chairperson, had received Rs 16.8 crore from ICICI Bank as salary and other compensation.
"ICICI Bank or its group companies have not paid any salary or granted any ESOPs to Madhabi Puri Buch after her retirement, other than her retiral benefits. It may be noted that she had opted for superannuation with effect from October 31, 2013," the bank said in a statement.
"During her employment with the ICICI Group, she received compensation in the form of salary, retiral benefits, bonus and ESOPs, in line with applicable policies...All the payments made to Ms. Buch post her retirement had accrued to her during her employment phase with the ICICI Group. These payments comprise ESOPs and retiral benefits," the statement read.
Congress's Jairam Ramesh has claimed a conflict of interest on part of the SEBI chairperson. He said serious questions have been raised about it in the regulatory body's Supreme Court-mandated investigations.
"These questions seem to have been simply brushed aside by the Government of India. Now comes this fresh revelation of shocking illegality," Mr Ramesh said in a post on X.
At a press conference today, alleging conflict of interest, the Congress asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come clean as the head of the appointments committee of the cabinet on her appointment.
The party alleged that the total amount received by Ms Buch from ICICI from her time of joining SEBI in 2017 and till today, totals Rs 16.8 crore which is 5.09 times the income she received from SEBI during the same period -- Rs 3.3 crore. The Supreme Court, the Congress said, should take note of the fresh revelations and demanded that the SEBI chairperson be dismissed.
The SEBI chairperson came under Congress attack after a report by the US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research that targeted her. The report has been trashed by political leaders and financial experts. The BJP has accused the Congress of being in league with Hindenburg.
Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband have called the report an attempt at "character assassination", made in response to the SEBI's action against Hindenburg in July.
The Adani Group, too, in an exchange filing, has rejected the report as "recycled claims" that were earlier "proven baseless and dismissed by the Supreme Court."
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