Amember on the board of Indias stock marker regulator has written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh accusing the Income-Tax Department of harassing him at the instigation of some officials in the finance ministry and those adversely affected by his orders. The official, KM Abraham, has described details of the alleged harassment in a lengthy letter to the nations highest authority. Abraham, a civil servant, has alleged that similar treatment is being meted out to another full-time member of the Sebi board, MS Sahoo. The letter, which does not name the alleged tormentors in the finance ministry, accuses the tax department of conducting what it describes as a roving inquiry into the purchase of apartments by the two members in Mumbai in 2009. Abraham, who handles Sebis market surveillance and investigation division, recently met principal secretary to the prime minister, TKA Nair, to discuss the situation, according to sources familiar with the matter. The Prime Ministers Office is vetting the charges, an official with knowledge of the developments said.
The letter has been seen by ET reporters. Abraham, a former finance secretary in the Kerala government, declined to comment for this story. The letter does not name any entity affected by Abrahams actions that may have been responsible for triggering the alleged harassment. The I-T probe began after the finance ministry received anonymous complaints about the purchase of apartments in Mumbai by Abraham and Sahoo. The unknown complainants alleged the flats in Kurlanot far from the Sebi headquarters in Bandra-Kurla complexhad been bought at a discount to the market price. They also sought an inquiry into the source of funds for the purchase. After the finance ministry referred the allegations to Sebi, the regulator conducted its own probe and concluded that the charges were false. In the letter, Abraham has accused the Income-Tax Department of continuing to seek irrelevant details. His three-year term as member of Sebi will end in July. Abraham and Sahoo, along with former Sebi chairman CB Bhave, had been cleared for an additional twoyear term in mid-2009 after their consent was sought by the finance ministry. Both had joined Sebi during Bhaves tenure in July 2008 on a threeyear term. But last year, the finance ministry decided not to grant a fresh term to the duo or Bhave, although they were all eligible. The denial of extensions to Bhave, Abraham and Sahoo despite the finance ministrys approval had led to charges that Omita Paul, advisor to Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, had sought to recall the proposal. In an interview to ET recently, Omita Paul had denied any role in this saying it was not unusual for a bureaucrat to be cleared for an extension and the proposal to be revoked later. Significant orders by Abraham include the decision to bar an IPO from Saharas housing subsidiary, barring the MCX Group from setting up a stock exchange, and arriving at a consent order that resulted in the Anil Ambani Group paying. 50 crore. Abraham has an MTech in industrial management from IITKanpur and is a chartered financial analyst from the CFA Institute, USA. The IAS officer of 1983 batch also has a PhD from the University of Michigan. - www.business-standard.com
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