Fixed match to save crony capitalists, ordinary investors losing: Rahul Gandhi on Adani, SEBI chief

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday alleged that there was a "fixed match" going on to protect crony capitalists and said ordinary investors will be the biggest loser in it.

In a video titled "Buch Stops here", Rahul Gandhi targets SEBI chief Madhabi Puri Buch and businessman Gautam Adani, as he discusses the issue of safeguarding investors' savings with his colleague and party leader Pawan Khera and veteran journalist Sucheta Dalal.

In the over eight-minute video conversation, Gandhi accuses SEBI, under chairperson Buch, of failing to protect investor wealth, instead, he said it "safeguarded" corporate giants like the Adani Group.

"Are your investments safe? When the match is fixed, then everyone loses and the common investor loses the most," he alleged in a post on X, while sharing the video.

Khera also shared the video and asked, "What is the impact of a seemingly compromised SEBI on the stock markets?" He said together, we dissect the real cost of this crony capitalism' not just in terms of lost savings, but also the erosion of trust and opportunity for millions of hardworking Indians.

"If we don't address this now, the damage to our economy and democracy will be irreversible," Khera said.

The Congress also shared the video on its X handle and said, "In this episode of 'Buch Stops Here', LoP Rahul Gandhi sits down with Pawan Khera and veteran journalist Sucheta Dalal to discuss how retail investors are being exploited by a system rigged to favour monopolies."

The party said, "The conversation sheds light on SEBI's failure under Buch's leadership, where regulatory mechanisms intended to protect common investors, now, safeguard corporate giants like Adani."

"This issue goes beyond financial mismanagement; it's about how small investors, entrepreneurs, and honest businesses are losing faith in a system designed to ensure fairness," the Congress said.

The Congress and Rahul Gandhi have been targeting SEBI chief Buch after alleging that she had investments in certain Adani-linked firms. However, Buch has denied the allegations.

The Congress has also been seeking the resignation of the SEBI chief over the allegations. The party has accused SEBI of not properly investigating Adani Group after US research group Hindenburg accused it of alleged stock price manipulation.