More than 500 Sebi officers across grades protested Thursday at the headquarters of the capital markets regulator in Mumbai’s financial nerve centre, demanding the resignation of chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch while also seeking withdrawal of the organization’s media statement that described their letter to the Centre as a likely fallout of instigation by unidentified ‘external elements’.
The silent protest held within the premises of Sebi Bhavan, in Bandra Kurla Complex, lasted for one and a half hours. This is the second silent protest by the officers this year after their complaints about HR issues to the top management went unheard. The first protest—a 15-minute sit-in — was held on August 5, a day before the employees sent their complaint to the finance ministry.
“The protest (on Thursday) is for the purpose of showing dissent and unity against the arm-twisting by the top management in the garb of a press release (issued on Wednesday) with a fake narrative against all Sebi employees,” read a note circulated among the officers.
The note further said their “immediate demand is the withdrawal of the press statement and the resignation of the chairperson for spreading lies against the employees”.
The officers gathered around 11 am at the flag hoisting area in Bhavan 1 and were there until 12.30 pm. After that, they resumed their work, said sources that witnessed the sit-in.
These people further said that the officers also met Sebi’s four whole-time members to convey their disappointment over the fake narrative pushed through Wednesday’s statement. Buch, however, was not present at the meeting, they added.
Sebi’s five-page statement on Wednesday said that the employees’ claims of an unprofessional work culture were misplaced. It also said that the officers were misguided by external elements to target the credibility of the institution and its leadership.
The statement comes after ET published the employees’ August 6 complaint to the finance ministry in its Wednesday edition. “Shouting, scolding and public humiliation have become the norm at Sebi,” read the officers’ August 6 letter to the center. Sebi’s Wednesday statement, was, however, silent on the “toxicity” complaints that the officers had raised as the core of their grievance.
