Congress accuses Madhabi Buch of drawing '₹16.8 crore ICICI salary' while being at SEBI

In the latest development in the Adani Group probe, the Congress party has accused Madhabi Buch of 'conflict of interest' since she drew a salary from ICICI Bank even when she was chairperson of Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

In a statement issued by the Congress, party spokesperson Pawan Khera on Monday (September 2) alleged that Buch continued to draw a salary from ICICI Bank, even while she was a member of SEBI. According to Khera, this represents a serious breach of ethics and accountability in public service.

Khera then questioned SEBI's integrity, stating that the market regulator should maintain impartiality and independence.

Further, Khera asked: "How can one ensure fair regulation when the head of SEBI has been receiving a salary from a private entity like ICICI Bank?". He emphasised the need for transparency in the regulatory body.

Greater pay

Khera also revealed that the total amount received by the SEBI Chairperson from ICICI from her time of joining SEBI in 2017 up until today "totals to ₹16,80,22,143, which is shockingly 5.09 times the income she received from SEBI during the same period which amounts to ₹3,30,28,246".

Finally, to sum it up, she took home a total salary of ₹16.80 crore from ICICI, added Khera.

At a press conference in Delhi, Khera questioned how someone sitting in such a higher position in a regulatory body was receiving a payment from somewhere else. "This is completely a violation of Section 54 of SEBI,” he reiterated.

No response

Even as the Congress called for further investigation into the matter to ensure that regulatory bodies remain free from external influence, Buch, who has been with SEBI since 2017 and became its chairperson in 2022, has not yet publicly responded to these allegations.

Strangely, since the current SEBI Chairperson took office in 2017, she has not only been drawing a salary from SEBI but has also been holding an Office of Profit at ICICI Bank, continuing to receive income from them to this very day, the Congress alleged.