Adani-Hindenburg case: Court refuses to hand over investigation to special team.

India's Supreme Court has rejected all requests by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to hand over the probe into alleged money laundering and laundering by the Adani Group to a special investigation team, Indian media reported on Wednesday.  

A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud and Justices Jamshed Burjor Pardiwala and Manoj Misra reserved judgment in the case on 24 November.

The Supreme Court said that independent reports or newspaper articles cannot be used to cast doubt on the investigation by securities market regulator SEBI. "There is no doubt about the correctness of SEBI's investigation into the allegations.

The Hindenburg report cannot be independently verified," the court said. The Supreme Court directed SEBI to complete its probe into the Adani group within three months.

The Supreme Court also warned the petitioners not to file petitions without proper inquiry. In January 2023, US research firm Hindenburg alleged "gross accounting fraud" and "stock manipulation" by a group led by Gautam Adani.

Adani strongly denied all the allegations and called the report "reasonable", causing more than $140 billion in damage to the Adani Group's stock. Adani, the second richest person in the world when the report was published, is now at number 16. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Gautam Adani welcomed the Supreme Court's verdict and said "Truth has prevailed".

The Supreme Court's decision shows that truth has triumphed. Satyameva Jayate. Thank you to those who supported us. Our humble contribution to India's growth story will continue.

Jai Hind,” said billionaire Adani on X (ex-Twitter).

Meanwhile, Adani Group shares rose between 3% and 11% within minutes of the Supreme Court decision.