The Supreme Court dismissed Reliance Industries Ltd’s appeal against a Securities Appellate Tribunal–upheld penalty of ₹3 million for delayed disclosure of Facebook’s 2020 investment in Jio Platforms. Emphasizing heightened corporate responsibility, the bench affirmed SEBI’s action for lapses under PIT and LODR regulations, keeping the monetary penalty intact.
The Supreme Court rejected appeals by Reliance Industries and two compliance officers against the Securities Appellate Tribunal’s order that affirmed SEBI’s ₹30 lakh penalty for delayed clarification of Facebook’s 2020 investment in Jio Platforms. The bench, led by the Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, reiterated that larger companies bear greater disclosure responsibilities.
SEBI’s penalty, imposed in June 2022 and upheld by SAT in May, cited violations under the SEBI PIT Regulations, 2015, and Regulation 30(11) of the LODR Regulations concerning prompt dissemination of unpublished price-sensitive information. The Supreme Court’s decision closes the challenge, maintaining the financial sanction on RIL.
Key highlights / major takeaways
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Penalty upheld: Supreme Court dismissed RIL’s appeal; ₹30 lakh fine stands for delayed disclosure.
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Regulatory basis: SEBI’s action under PIT Regulations, 2015, and LODR Regulation 30(11) affirmed.
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Scope of appeal: Included RIL and compliance officers Savithri Parekh and K. Sethuraman.
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Judicial stance: “Bigger the company, greater the responsibility,” noted during hearing.
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Case context: Involves 2020 Facebook investment announcement in Jio Platforms.
Sources: The Economic Times; LiveLaw; UNI India