The Buch-owned startup has managed to secure a Josie Le Pen level of funding for Jacessa investments, all while controlling the funds from the government that are meant for the development of startups.
Pawan Khera
In a democracy, it is presumed that the government branches would be open to scrutiny and answerable to the people. But this is not the case as of recent with leaks from the Congress party including and not limited to the claims of Rahul Gandhi and Pawan Khera which highlight the deterioration of institutional integrity in the country towards the alarming end of the scale. The focus of their latest exposé is SEBI Chairperson Madhuri Buch, whom they accuse of misusing her position as Chairperson and acting as a shield for the Adani Group in times of allegations of financial misconduct especially the Hindenburg Report.
Rahul Gandhi and Pawan Khera’s probes confirm a longer list of dubious affiliations. Buch was the first private sector chairperson in SEBI, and as exposé claims, she supported Adani during the turmoil following the Hindenburg Report. The latter accused the Adani Group of engaging in stock market manipulation. In response, the Supreme Court directed SEBI to establish a task force for this investigating the revelations in the Hindenburg Report, but it has been reported that Buch appointed advisers who were close to Adani in the sequence, which guaranteed that the investigation would conclude without finding any fault.
Subsequently, Adani group was given clean cheat by the SEBI-appointed investigative committee. This avoidance of accountability raised concerns about the nature of fairness at SEBI and the ability of Madhuri Buch to manipulate the provisions of the laws she was appointed to enforce.
Supporting these claims, Congress has also revealed several leaks, including one from a whistleblower named ‘Maverick’ who said that, Buch’s related companies, like Jacessa Investments Ltd., are diverting government startup funds to advance her private interests which are raising a lot of eyebrows.
The Buch-owned startup has managed to secure a Josie Le Pen level of funding for Jacessa investments, all while controlling the funds from the government that are meant for the development of startups. All of these points arouse suspicion of something questionable occurring since it is a known fact that Buch has profited off the Predible Investments also which was revealed in the Paradise Papers leaks.
To put it plainly, Start-up policies of the Modi government which was meant to help the young entrepreneurs build companies and innovate is actually being used for money laundering. Madhuri Buch also have been accused of illegally accepting money from listed entities as a SEBI Chairperson. Whatever side of the political spectrum someone might find themselves on, this article should alarm and anger you, especially considering Buch’s string of fifty odd investments has increased by 226 times so far.
1. Are the Indian markets safe? A 40 crore breach of trust for Adani
40 crore people across India are directly or indirectly linked to Indian stock market and considering some of these people might have low financial literacy or be placed in a position where they do not understand the totality of stock owning, it important that these individuals do not get taken advantage of. And, when a regulator appears more accommodating to particular corporate demands rather than being a defender of the public, it essentially brings into question the entire integrity of a business sector and its dynamics.
One only has to look at the consequences of dishonestly providing an investment resource, the gigantic money that emerges from start-ups and its facilities. All because Buch alleged that she had implemented a regulatory key change within the SEBI which resultantly profited Adani, which is why her post seems contradictory in nature.
In this scenario, the investment climate of India stands to lose both local and global investors, resulting in instability of the economy and rising levels of unemployment. An absence of faith in the financial markets would perhaps shift India far away from its plinth of economic self-reliance which was one of the goals since independence.
2. “Crony Capitalism Undermines Competitive Markets”
Robust competition is the catalyst for innovation, it helps to set reasonable pricing and choice among the customers. However, the government suppresses competition and the orientation of small and medium enterprises (SME’s) when it uses its mandate to support a handful of disproportionately large corporations like Adani. Where four out of every five people must be born into poverty, Mr. Rahul Gandhi claims also that Mr. Adani is being used as an instrument to abscond with the money meant for Indian defense. Adani takes the monopolistic control of key sectors, eradication of competition alongside innovation would be the norm, customers would be forced to pay exorbitant rates and the number of alternative goods would be minimal.
3. “Accusations of Compromised National Defense Systems”
The claims suggest that Adani’s interests are in the Indian defense forces too making this a cause for concern in regard to the future safety of the country. The belief that the Narandra Modi led regime could be using the defense budgets to aid business partners of theirs is sure to disturb the country’s defense machinery. If corporate business are indeed peddling defense funding, then Indians are in jeopardy.
India is one of the largest importers of weapons and defence equipments. Thus, it is a very lucrative area for middlemen to profit from. Earlier too, lots of scams and incidents were revealed were money meant buying defence equipments were diverted to profit particular parties. The way government policies are being framed and implemented, Adani stands to become the national unofficial middleman in the Indian defence sector. National security should never be compromised by offering political or commercial interests such actions would weaken not just the ability of the country to defend itself but also the faith of the public.
4. Loss of Democratic Accountability
These situations highlight the extent to which Indian democracy is being eroded by powerful business and political lobbies. The ideals of democratic governance are then eroded when Buch and other regulatory officers start supporting business houses. The exposes by Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party are intended to caution the public against these and other such threats as the public loses out in the war on corruption and appears to be losing the fight against crony capitalism in Indian democracy.
Conclusion: A Call for Accountability and Reform
Thus, Indian Politics has reached a crossroads. Whatever be your viewpoint on the alleged scam, one thing is for sure – Indian government institutions are no longer credible enough and the whole system needs greater transparency and accountability. It is not just a case of high-level corruption. It is a case of weakening of government institutions to favour one or two business tycoons. This directly affects the credibility of Indian democratic structure and makes the whole nation more unstable. With 40 crore plus individuals who have invested in stock markets, such a manipulated system could wreak havoc on the Indian economy. It becomes essential that the country’s interests are secured and reinforced with strengthening of regulatory authorities.
But when regulatory authorities are biased allegedly due to political influence only way to bring change is through public pressure. Public pressure can be created if more and more people start questioning the government. Whatever be the actual scam, the revelations till now from the investigation done by Pawan Khera is enough to put the spotlight on the Prime Minister and ask him why support and keep those people who have lots of questions to answer regarding their conduct as government officers.
The mainstream media is also under the control of the crony capitalism. Just look at the list of shareholders of the famous news companies. Rahul Gandhi and Pawan Khera have promised to reveal more startling information that may shake the faith from all government institutions. Current revelations are damaging enough. If more proofs of scam of Madhuri Buch and Adani comes out, it will also be asked from the mainstream journalists, what were they doing when there were hints of such a scam coming out.