10th March 2022
So was Chitra RamaKrishna an Innocent Victim?? . Don't wait for CBI to find any thing, as they never bloody crack any case.
We have to depend on investigative journalists like Sucheta Dalal to expose these crooks.
If GOI gives each and every senior executive an option of telling the truth or face the sack, have all assets seized and one year in Tihar jail, all the rats will queue up to vomit the Truth.
Allow Sucheta Dalal to take all their confessions and make them public.
Keep useless toothless CBI out
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17th Feb 2022
Sucheta Dalal Calls Out SEBI’s Incompetence In Regards To The Case Of NSE’s Chitra Ramkrishna
Sucheta Dalal Calls Out SEBI’s Incompetence In Regards To The Case Of NSE’s Chitra Ramkrishna
February 17, 2022
One of the foremost investigative journalists in the world of finance is none other than Sucheta Dalal. She has time and again exposed scams and unravelled frauds committed by financial institutions. Adding to the list of scams that she is investigating is the one that involves Chitra Ramkrishna, Himalayan yogi, NSE, SEBI, and Anand Subramanian. Yep, I know it sounds absurd and random but Sucheta Dalal explains it best.
In a video, Sucheta Dalal sheds light on the NSE’s former MD and CEO, Chrita Ramkrishna who allegedly shared confidential information with a Himalayan yogi who used her like a “puppet” and made her take many decisions. She even says that the 190-page official order that SEBI released is just ‘he said, she said’ rather than an investigation report.
When this case came to light, Sucheta Dalal revealed that the SEBI was the one who was supposed to investigate the case but all they conducted was “gentle questioning”. In her video, the investigative journalist highlights that the SEBI did not trace the email id of the Himalayan yogi, did not question Chitra Ramkrishna for the email conversations and payments she made to the yogi, and the SEBI also does not look into Anand Subramanian, who in a span of just a few years became the second highest-paid employee of NSE.
Sucheta Dalal also goes on to reveal some of the emails that were exchanged between Chitra Ramkrishna and Himalayan yogi. The emails consisted of the yogi asking her to “chill with him” in Seychelles and also asking her to constantly reward Anand Subramanian and other people who held high office positions. In the video, the journalist also hinted at the fact that Anand Subramanian might be the yogi and that the SEBI failed to look into him.
Now, this doesn’t cover the whole gist of what Sucheta Dalal said in her video where she exposes Chitra Ramkrishna, Himalayan yogi, Anand Subramanian, other employees of NSE, and SEBI. But if you want to know more about the whole controversy regarding the NSE, then check out her video:
From whatever basic gist I have understood, I can say one thing with certainty and that is that this is a scary place to be for all of us. If one of the government’s biggest financial institutions can be invaded so easily, then it surely needs to be looked into. As for this case, only time will tell what happens.
One of the foremost investigative journalists in the world of finance is none other than Sucheta Dalal. She has time and again exposed scams and unravelled frauds committed by financial institutions. Adding to the list of scams that she is investigating is the one that involves Chitra Ramkrishna, Himalayan yogi, NSE, SEBI, and Anand Subramanian. Yep, I know it sounds absurd and random but Sucheta Dalal explains it best.
In a video, Sucheta Dalal sheds light on the NSE’s former MD and CEO, Chrita Ramkrishna who allegedly shared confidential information with a Himalayan yogi who used her like a “puppet” and made her take many decisions. She even says that the 190-page official order that SEBI released is just ‘he said, she said’ rather than an investigation report.
When this case came to light, Sucheta Dalal revealed that the SEBI was the one who was supposed to investigate the case but all they conducted was “gentle questioning”. In her video, the investigative journalist highlights that the SEBI did not trace the email id of the Himalayan yogi, did not question Chitra Ramkrishna for the email conversations and payments she made to the yogi, and the SEBI also does not look into Anand Subramanian, who in a span of just a few years became the second highest-paid employee of NSE.
Sucheta Dalal also goes on to reveal some of the emails that were exchanged between Chitra Ramkrishna and Himalayan yogi. The emails consisted of the yogi asking her to “chill with him” in Seychelles and also asking her to constantly reward Anand Subramanian and other people who held high office positions. In the video, the journalist also hinted at the fact that Anand Subramanian might be the yogi and that the SEBI failed to look into him.
Now, this doesn’t cover the whole gist of what Sucheta Dalal said in her video where she exposes Chitra Ramkrishna, Himalayan yogi, Anand Subramanian, other employees of NSE, and SEBI. But if you want to know more about the whole controversy regarding the NSE, then check out her video:
From whatever basic gist I have understood, I can say one thing with certainty and that is that this is a scary place to be for all of us. If one of the government’s biggest financial institutions can be invaded so easily, then it surely needs to be looked into. As for this case, only time will tell what happens.
Sitharaman questions Sebi’s handling of NSE scandal
I have no comment to make on whether adequate correctional steps were taken in the sense of penalising of those who were responsible for it: Finance Minister
Nirmala Sitharaman
Our Bureau | Mumbai | Published 23.02.22, 02:59 AM
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said the Centre is looking into the corrective steps taken by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) in response to the irregularities at the National Stock Exchange (NSE) that led to the exit of Chitra Ramkrishna as the managing director and CEO in December 2016.
The past developments at the bourse were an instance of opaque and discretion-based decision making beyond the realm of law and governance, she said. Sitharaman made these comments in an interview to The Economic Times.
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The Centre has no intentions to weaken any institution, she said, but the question remains if the market regulator with its current powers handled the incident adequately and properly.
There is a general perception that Sebi did not handle the issue properly, she added.
Stand reversal
At a press conference here on Tuesday, the finance minister declined to make any fresh comments. Replying to a question on whether the action taken by Sebi was adequate, Sitharaman said she cannot comment at this stage on whether the regulator took adequate correctional step to penalise the offenders.
“I have no comment to make on whether adequate correctional steps were taken in the sense of penalising of those who were responsible for it. I have no view this way or that way, till I get into the bottom of this issue,’’ she added.
Her comments comes just days after the CBI questioned Ramkrishna in relation to the co-location case where certain brokers received preferential access to the NSE’s servers. It came to light after an anonymous whistleblower wrote letters to Sebi and the finance ministry. In 2019, Sebi directed NSE to pay Rs 625 crore for the misuse of the co-location facility.
A recent Sebi order revealed that Ramkrishna was guided by a mysterious “Himalayan Yogi” in taking key business decisions and that she had also shared certain confidential internal information on the NSE.
25th Feb 2022
Guru scandal deals blow to India's National Stock Exchange IPO
Report that ex-CEO took orders from 'spiritual force' sparks furor
Report that ex-CEO took orders from 'spiritual force' sparks furor
Testimony by Chitra Ramkrishna, the former CEO of the National Stock Exchange of India, concerning her ties to a Himalayan holy man threaten to upset the bourse's IPO ambitions. © ReutersDEV CHATTERJEE, Contributing writer
February 25, 2022 13:19 JST
MUMBAI -- Financial backers of India's largest stock exchange may have to wait still longer to cash in their investments, after regulators punished the bourse's operator for allowing a former CEO to outsource key decisions to a person she said was a religious guru in the Himalayas.
Riding high on a boom in trading and initial public offerings, the National Stock Exchange of India had hoped to revive plans for an IPO of its own. A share flotation would provide an exit to big investors, including Canadian pension fund operators and venture capital funds.
But bizarre testimony by former CEO Chitra Ramkrishna that she took instructions from a mysterious yogi threatens to derail the exchange's plans. The IPO had been expected to raise up to 100 billion rupees ($1.33 billion), at a tentative valuation of 2 trillion rupees, perhaps as soon as next month.
"The [IPO] will get delayed by at least a year as investigations against the exchange have intensified and stock indices are off their record highs," predicted Sneha Poddar, an equity analyst with Motilal Oswal Financial Services. "The NSE valuation for the IPO will change, depending on the outcome of the ongoing probe."
India's market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), revealed on Feb. 11 that Ramkrishna had shared confidential information, including financial results, dividend plans and human resources policies, with an unknown person by email.
SEBI said the former CEO described the person as a "spiritual force that could manifest itself anywhere it wanted and did not have any physical or locational coordinates," but "largely dwelt in the Himalayan ranges."
Ramkrishna was "merely a puppet in his hands," according to the regulator's report, which said the NSE board had been aware of the exchange of information and kept the matter "under wraps." SEBI fined the stock exchange 20 million rupees and banned it from launching new products for the next six months.
The report -- and the size of the fine against a company with revenue of 62 billion rupees in the last fiscal year -- caused a political outcry that has yet to die down. On Monday, Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government is examining whether SEBI took adequate action. "The NSE is a classic case of absolutely opaque, discretion-based decision-making beyond the rule of law," Sitharaman said in an interview with The Economic Times.
Ramkrishna was one of five founding executives of the NSE in 1992, and in its 30 year history it has become a near-monopoly in many asset classes. It dominates equity trading in India and claims 100% of the Indian equity futures and options markets, making it the world's largest derivatives exchange with a 21% share of the global derivatives market.
It is also one of India's most profitable companies, with profit after tax of 36.2 billion rupees in the nine months to Dec. 31, up 13% versus the same period of 2020. It is on course to reach a record profit for the full fiscal year.
MUMBAI -- Financial backers of India's largest stock exchange may have to wait still longer to cash in their investments, after regulators punished the bourse's operator for allowing a former CEO to outsource key decisions to a person she said was a religious guru in the Himalayas.
Riding high on a boom in trading and initial public offerings, the National Stock Exchange of India had hoped to revive plans for an IPO of its own. A share flotation would provide an exit to big investors, including Canadian pension fund operators and venture capital funds.
But bizarre testimony by former CEO Chitra Ramkrishna that she took instructions from a mysterious yogi threatens to derail the exchange's plans. The IPO had been expected to raise up to 100 billion rupees ($1.33 billion), at a tentative valuation of 2 trillion rupees, perhaps as soon as next month.
"The [IPO] will get delayed by at least a year as investigations against the exchange have intensified and stock indices are off their record highs," predicted Sneha Poddar, an equity analyst with Motilal Oswal Financial Services. "The NSE valuation for the IPO will change, depending on the outcome of the ongoing probe."
India's market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), revealed on Feb. 11 that Ramkrishna had shared confidential information, including financial results, dividend plans and human resources policies, with an unknown person by email.
SEBI said the former CEO described the person as a "spiritual force that could manifest itself anywhere it wanted and did not have any physical or locational coordinates," but "largely dwelt in the Himalayan ranges."
Ramkrishna was "merely a puppet in his hands," according to the regulator's report, which said the NSE board had been aware of the exchange of information and kept the matter "under wraps." SEBI fined the stock exchange 20 million rupees and banned it from launching new products for the next six months.
The report -- and the size of the fine against a company with revenue of 62 billion rupees in the last fiscal year -- caused a political outcry that has yet to die down. On Monday, Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government is examining whether SEBI took adequate action. "The NSE is a classic case of absolutely opaque, discretion-based decision-making beyond the rule of law," Sitharaman said in an interview with The Economic Times.
Ramkrishna was one of five founding executives of the NSE in 1992, and in its 30 year history it has become a near-monopoly in many asset classes. It dominates equity trading in India and claims 100% of the Indian equity futures and options markets, making it the world's largest derivatives exchange with a 21% share of the global derivatives market.
It is also one of India's most profitable companies, with profit after tax of 36.2 billion rupees in the nine months to Dec. 31, up 13% versus the same period of 2020. It is on course to reach a record profit for the full fiscal year.
Early investors, including Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, have pared their stakes in the exchange operator in private sales, according to NSE disclosures. The bourse's current investors include the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System and venture capital fund Tiger Global Five Holdings.
A series of scandals has delayed plans for an IPO for several years. Ramkrishna left the NSE in 2016, citing personal reasons, after three years in the top job that were marred by a "co-location" scandal. It was revealed that favored brokers were allowed to access the exchange's servers ahead of others, helping them make hefty trading profits.
SEBI imposed a fine of 10 billion rupees on the NSE in April 2019 for the co-location scandal and banned it from raising funds via an IPO for six months, but the exchange appealed the order and the matter is still pending.
It was the co-location investigation that turned up the details about the exchange's internal workings that are now coming to light, including the extraordinary claims that the CEO was guided by a spiritual force.
SEBI accused Ramkrishna of hiring the exchange's chief operating officer, Anand Subramanian, without consulting the board's nomination and remuneration committee, and paying him far more than others. A forensic investigation by EY, an international accountancy, suggested that Subramanian, who is no longer with the exchange, was the person from whom Ramkrishna was getting advice, but they both denied the claim and SEBI disagreed with EY's conclusion. The identity of the individual remains a mystery, it said.
Reuters and local media NDTV reported on Friday that India's Central Bureau of Investigation has arrested Subramanian over alleged trading irregularities. The CBI has not publicly confirmed the arrest.
In her testimony, Ramkrishna said she met a siddha purusha (holy man) on the banks of the River Ganges and was guided by him for 20 years. When asked how the man accessed his email in the Himalayas, Ramkrishna replied that "the spiritual powers do not require them to have any such physical coordinates."
SEBI found that the NSE and its board were aware of irregularities and misconduct on the part of Ramkrishna in the appointment of Subramanian. And although it discussed the matter at a 2016 board meeting, it did not record that discussion in the minutes.
"There is something more than what meets the eye," said Shriram Subramanian, founder of InGovern Research, a shareholder proxy advisory firm, and who is not related to Anand Subramanian. "The penalties levied by the SEBI are laughingly low for the magnitude of violations of securities law."
In its response to the SEBI ruling, the exchange said it has taken steps to improve its internal controls. "We wish to reiterate that NSE is committed to the highest standards of governance and transparency, and will extend full cooperation to the regulator for a satisfactory closure of the matter."
The company declined to comment on its IPO plans, as the scandal continues to unfold. The Central Bureau of Investigation has launched a probe and politicians are promising more scrutiny, including of the NSE's investors and SEBI itself.
"'We would like to know who invested in NSE in the last seven and a half years, with complete details of the holding, price of acquisition and date of investments," said Gourav Vallabh, a spokesperson for the opposition Indian National Congress. "And what was SEBI doing from 2016 on [the] Ramakrishna shenanigans when scandalous facts were first reported?
"The entire world is laughing at us, that a country known as the technology powerhouse of the world can't trace a baba (monk) who is sending emails from an unknown address."
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26th Feb 2022
Another whistleblower, but no action from NSE
Shantanu Guha RayPublished
:
February 26,2022,
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is looking into documents that say the National Stock Exchange (NSE) received another complaint from a whistleblower in the second quarter of FY22 alleging malpractices and corruption in acquisition of computers and software.
The whistleblower alerted the NSE that it was a single vendor scam, which needed to be probed thoroughly by the bourse. Highly placed sources told this reporter that this acquisition process started as early as 2008-09 and continued till 2019-20.
So what exactly was the complaint? The complaint was towards acquiring the assets from a single vendor without following the standard protocols (SOP-Standard Operating Procedure). On receipt of the letter from the whistleblower, the NSE board decided to carry out a thorough investigation towards the allegations from the whistleblower for the NSE board of directors.
What the CBI is probing is why the NSE management did not describe the assignment as a forensic audit, and whether such a move was to avoid the attention of the regulator and public at large. The investigating agency is also probing as to why the NSE management labelled the assignment as process review for procurement of computers and software.
Highly placed sources further told this reporter that the NSE processed the complaint through their legal department and not the exchange’s audit committee, which was supposed to have ordered the forensic investigation.
The whistleblower said the purchase transactions had taken place when Chitra Ramakrishna was at the helm of affairs, and even after she left the bourse in 2016.
So what happened? The NSE appointed a firm of chartered accountants, Chokshi & Chokshi LLP to carry out the process review for specific transactions worth around Rs 3 crore under process review—claimed the whistleblower—but avoided, for reasons best known to the agency, similar transactions worth around Rs 170 crore.
The entire process, claimed the whistleblower, needed further investigation. Why? Because the stock exchange had acquired similar computers from the same single vendor worth approximately Rs 170 cr in FY 19-20 and 20-21 and still not covered under review of the auditor.
Chokshi & Chokshi is believed to have completed their assignment of process review around August 2021, which found a number of lapses in the nature of irregularities to acquire computers and software from a single vendor. The report, titled Opinion on process review for procurement of computers and software under specific transactions by Choksi & Choksi LLP, was submitted to the NSE on 26 August 2021.
The whistleblower claimed that the auditors found lapses majorly in areas of internal financial controls and under corporate governance by not following protocols as described under SOP of NSE to acquire the assets.
The auditors, claimed the whistleblower, stated clearly in their report about lapses on account of acquiring the assets to the extent of Rs 3 cr, while mentioning disclaimer in areas of acquisition of similar assets from the same single vendor to the extent of another large amount around Rs 170 cr for which they were not asked to report.
The CBI is probing why the NSE Board discussed the forensic auditor report but did not inform the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the market regulator. The investigating agency is probing why the market regulator was kept in the dark by the NSE. In normal circumstances, the regulator should have been informed by the bourse of any such serious lapses.
Repeated efforts to reach the legal department of NSE and the auditors met with no response.
This is not all.
Now there are reports that officials of the Income Tax department were probing into the accounts of 11 brokerages and two foreign portfolio investors (FPIs). The tax officials were probing if the brokerage firms and FPIs provided indirect benefits to some board members of NSE in exchange of sensitive information as part of the co-location case. Officials of the I-T and the CBI suspect that these entities used tax havens to purchase assets, fund holidays and invest in some of the businesses of the families of these board members.
Among those probed is Infotech Financials Pvt Ltd (IFPL), which had obtained trading data from NSE for computing the Liquidity Index. It needs to be mentioned here that Sunita Thomas, wife of top NSE official Suprabhat Lala, was one of the directors of Infotech Financials. Thomas was also sister-in-law of Ajay Shah, a top market economist who was associated with the exchange and was instrumental in giving the contract to IFPL, which he later allegedly used for commercial benefit, according to the SEBI’s first report into the co-location matter.
Officials of the I-T department are also probing transactions made by top NSE officials Ravi Varanasi, who was then head of the business development, Deviprasad Singh, head of co-location support; and Nagendra Kumar. SEBI had kept them under watch and accused them for colluding with two brokerages apart from OPG Securities, so as to give them an unfair advantage over the rest of the market.
Tax officials, claimed the Economic Times, are examining the foreign travel data of those named in the NSE co-location case for links to these brokerages and FPIs. “There is a reason for the holidays via Seychelles. Investigation suggests that it was done to mask any link between the parties involved. We are also looking into investments in companies promoted by some of their family members,” the newspaper said.
Delhi-based brokerage OPG Securities is already being investigated by the CBI and other government agencies, along with a host of other brokerages and two FPIs. The investigating agencies are probing the extent of involvement of the other brokerage houses who were named by the SEBI. These names featured in a report prepared by S.K. Mohanty, SEBI whole-time director. Clearly the matter calls for a comprehensive probe, to maintain investor confidence in the Indian market.
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Chitra Ramkrishna, the NSE CEO who let a faceless conman ‘yogi’ make all key decisions
The curious case of former NSE CEO Chitra Ramakrishna and the invisible hand of a yogi who virtually ran India’s largest exchange
Chitra Ramkrishna, the former CEO and MD of NSE, India’s largest stock exchange with a combined market capitalisation of close to $4 trillion, was guided by a yogi residing in the Himalayas for the appointment of Anand Subramanian, little-known in the industry, as the exchange’s chief operating officer (COO) in 2013. The appointment cost NSE ₹5 crore.
The revelations are part of SEBI’s final order on Friday after a probe against Ramakrishna, NSE, and four others. The order was released on Friday and available on the market regulator’s website.
Ramkrishna referred to the unknown yogi as “Sironmani” [the exalted one] and shared with him information such as NSE’s five year projections, financial data, dividend ratio, business plans, agenda of board meeting, and even consulted him on employee performance appraisals.
Ramkrishna was ousted from NSE in 2016 for her role in the co-location and algo trading scam and abuse of power in the appointment of Subramanian. The probe found that Ramkrishna ran NSE with impunity. No one from the senior management, board, or the promoters — which include big government institutions and banks — ever objected to her ways. Instead, Ramkrishna was given ₹44 crore as pending dues and salary when she left NSE.
SEBI’s probe revealed that Ramkrishna communicated with the yogi, whom she had never met, over email, for almost 20 years and he guided her to appoint Subramanian as the second in command at NSE. “Their spiritual powers do not require them to have any such physical coordinates and would manifest at will,” Ramkrishna told SEBI. The contents of the email were not denied by her.
On January 18, 2013, Subramanian was offered the role of Chief Strategic Advisor at NSE for an annual compensation of ₹1.68 crore against his last drawn salary (as per his claim) of ₹15 lakh at Balmer Lawrie.
NSE’s role in clean chit to ex-CEO under lens
Feb 16, 2022
NEW DELHI: The federal government and Sebi are inspecting how former MD & CEO of the Nationwide Inventory Change (NSE) Chitra Ramakrishna was let off with none motion or penalties and the curious determination of the nation’s largest bourse to permit her laptop computer to be destroyed as e-waste when it contained essential proof, together with the IP handle of the mysterious guru advising the disgraced govt.
Apart from, among the appointments on the board and the hyperlinks of key NSE functionaries, with some distinguished authorities functionaries in the course of the UPA regime, are beneath the lens.
Whereas the Sebi order has dwelt into among the points, the function of the board and a few key functionaries has been questioned as they allowed Ramakrishna to exit by a resignation in December 2016 and the board even accorded its appreciation. Final week’s order pointed to “grave irregularities and misconduct” by Ramakrishna within the appointment of Anand Subramanian as chief strategic adviser and his re-designation as group working officer and adviser to MD with out following due course of.
Apart from, in violation of Sebi tips, the board went to the extent of allowing “extra go away encashment” for Ramakrishna, citing her “sterling contribution” to NSE’s progress, with out regulatory approval. She had cited private causes for resigning from the important thing put up.
What has raised eyebrows is the failure of the board to document the irregularities within the identify of “confidentiality and delicate info” whereas submitting a report back to Sebi, which got here after reminders from the regulator.
Given the character of the allegations and the reputational injury to the NSE, a wider probe is being referred to as for, particularly one which covers an extended interval. Sources indicated that the federal government might subject a response over the subsequent few days. Sources stated {that a} cleanup on the NSE has been initiated and a brand new administration has been in place for some time, however the revelations level to irregularities that date again to 2013 and even previous to that with the findings towards Ramakrishna tumbling out in the course of the probe associated to the co-location rip-off that was allowed by the administration led by Ravi Narain, her predecessor.
The yogi, the CEO & the lesson:
|Mumbai, February 12
Chitra Ramkrishna
SEBI bars NSE Chitra Ramkrishna for 3 years from associating with any MII; Ravi Narain for two years
Chitra Ramkrishna
SEBI bars NSE Chitra Ramkrishna for 3 years from associating with any MII; Ravi Narain for two years
The curious case of former NSE CEO Chitra Ramakrishna and the invisible hand of a yogi who virtually ran India’s largest exchange
Chitra Ramkrishna, the former CEO and MD of NSE, India’s largest stock exchange with a combined market capitalisation of close to $4 trillion, was guided by a yogi residing in the Himalayas for the appointment of Anand Subramanian, little-known in the industry, as the exchange’s chief operating officer (COO) in 2013. The appointment cost NSE ₹5 crore.
The revelations are part of SEBI’s final order on Friday after a probe against Ramakrishna, NSE, and four others. The order was released on Friday and available on the market regulator’s website.
Ramkrishna referred to the unknown yogi as “Sironmani” [the exalted one] and shared with him information such as NSE’s five year projections, financial data, dividend ratio, business plans, agenda of board meeting, and even consulted him on employee performance appraisals.
Ramkrishna was ousted from NSE in 2016 for her role in the co-location and algo trading scam and abuse of power in the appointment of Subramanian. The probe found that Ramkrishna ran NSE with impunity. No one from the senior management, board, or the promoters — which include big government institutions and banks — ever objected to her ways. Instead, Ramkrishna was given ₹44 crore as pending dues and salary when she left NSE.
SEBI’s probe revealed that Ramkrishna communicated with the yogi, whom she had never met, over email, for almost 20 years and he guided her to appoint Subramanian as the second in command at NSE. “Their spiritual powers do not require them to have any such physical coordinates and would manifest at will,” Ramkrishna told SEBI. The contents of the email were not denied by her.
On January 18, 2013, Subramanian was offered the role of Chief Strategic Advisor at NSE for an annual compensation of ₹1.68 crore against his last drawn salary (as per his claim) of ₹15 lakh at Balmer Lawrie.
In March 2014, Ramkrishna approved a 20 per cent increment to Subramanian and his salary was revised to ₹2.01 crore.
Five weeks thereafter, Subramanian’s salary was again revised upwards by 15 per cent to ₹2.31 crore as Ramkrishna dubbed his performance to be A+ (exceptional).
By 2015, his cost-to-company had zoomed to ₹5 crore, he was given a cabin next to Ramkrishna and granted first-class international air travel. All this was in accordance with the yogi’s instructions.
An email from the unknown yogi even carried the diktat that Subramanian be exempt from the contractual 5-day work week and instead be asked to come only for three days and allowed to work the rest of the time at will.
Another email on September 5, 2015, from the yogi told Ramkrishna, “SOM, if I had the opportunity to be a person on Earth then Kanchan is the perfect fit. Ashirvadhams.” On December 30, 2015, Ramkrishna told the Yogi in her reply, “SIRONMANI, struggle is I have always seen THEE through G, and challenged myself to on my own realise the difference.” ‘SOM’ refers to Ramkrishna, and ‘Kanchan’ and ‘G’ refer to Subramanian, the SEBI probe revealed.
These findings were confirmed by Dinesh Kanabar, the then Chairman of NSE nomination and remuneration committee. Subramanian had all the powers of the MD and CEO, and was flying first class, but remained a consultant on paper. SEBI had observed that there was a glaring conspiracy of a money making scheme involving NSE’s boss with the unknown person.
An email dated February 18, 2015, from Ramkrishna to the unknown yogi, reads, “The role and designation of Group Chief Coordination Officer is fine and we could take that forward. I have a small submission, can we make this as Group President and Chief Coordination Officer? And over a time frame as you direct we can move the entire operations of the exchange under G and redesignate him as Chief Operating Officer? Seek Your guidance on the path forward on this Swami If this meets with your Highness’ approval, then parallelly could we coin JR (Ravi) as Group President Finance and stakeholder relations and Corporate General Counsel?”
The reply reads, “I have the following questions that will place all of you in an awkward situation. I buy your argument and analysis, interesting but have not got my answers from your own concerns. If on one hand I call JR a President who is a KMP (key management person) the other person, how can he/she be excused? Is it subjective? Competitors bring new faces much below par at intelligent levels and functional expertise, they bring all as COO and VP, we are bringing a legitimate case here which needs introspection. I have never suggested any changes in reporting of trading and other verticals, I am only trying to initiate the importance of levels within the organisation. So from a strategic perspective, can I bring the title Group COO since subsidiaries also report to him and acceptable to all. Larger the thoughts, clearer our stand, postures become easier. ASHIRVADHAMS, a revert on this is good for one and all. GNANA VEL.”
The SEBI order said, “It is not unusual that the whip of an arbitrary and dictatorial reign would cause any employee to be reluctant in filing a complaint against its top leader in fear of the repercussions. This is evident from the various anonymous complaints received by SEBI against Ramkrishna, from which these proceedings have emanated and various irregularities unearthed.”
Yet, Ramkrishna was made NSE’s MD and CEO in 2013 with a powerful politician in Delhi backing her, sources told BusinessLine. A forensic audit showed that only Ramkrishna and Subramanian were imaged/checked while the laptops assigned to them were disposed of as e-waste by NSE. Even their personal emails were not available for forensic audit.
Ramkrishna told SEBI that at the time, neither the compensation committee, NRC, nor the board of the NSE had ever raised any query in relation to these issues, nor was any issue in this regard ever brought to her attention. Ashok Chawla, a former bureaucrat in the Finance Ministry and then Chairman of NSE, accepted Ramkrishna’s resignation due to personal reasons and the board appreciated her sterling contribution to the growth of the organisation.
For all this, SEBI’s punishment to Ramkrishna is paltry. Ramkrishna has now been barred from capital markets for three years and SEBI has directed the NSE to forfeit the excess leave encashment of ₹1.54 crore and the deferred bonus of ₹2.83 crores.
Published on February 12, 2022
NSE
SEBI
An email from the unknown yogi even carried the diktat that Subramanian be exempt from the contractual 5-day work week and instead be asked to come only for three days and allowed to work the rest of the time at will.
Another email on September 5, 2015, from the yogi told Ramkrishna, “SOM, if I had the opportunity to be a person on Earth then Kanchan is the perfect fit. Ashirvadhams.” On December 30, 2015, Ramkrishna told the Yogi in her reply, “SIRONMANI, struggle is I have always seen THEE through G, and challenged myself to on my own realise the difference.” ‘SOM’ refers to Ramkrishna, and ‘Kanchan’ and ‘G’ refer to Subramanian, the SEBI probe revealed.
These findings were confirmed by Dinesh Kanabar, the then Chairman of NSE nomination and remuneration committee. Subramanian had all the powers of the MD and CEO, and was flying first class, but remained a consultant on paper. SEBI had observed that there was a glaring conspiracy of a money making scheme involving NSE’s boss with the unknown person.
An email dated February 18, 2015, from Ramkrishna to the unknown yogi, reads, “The role and designation of Group Chief Coordination Officer is fine and we could take that forward. I have a small submission, can we make this as Group President and Chief Coordination Officer? And over a time frame as you direct we can move the entire operations of the exchange under G and redesignate him as Chief Operating Officer? Seek Your guidance on the path forward on this Swami If this meets with your Highness’ approval, then parallelly could we coin JR (Ravi) as Group President Finance and stakeholder relations and Corporate General Counsel?”
The reply reads, “I have the following questions that will place all of you in an awkward situation. I buy your argument and analysis, interesting but have not got my answers from your own concerns. If on one hand I call JR a President who is a KMP (key management person) the other person, how can he/she be excused? Is it subjective? Competitors bring new faces much below par at intelligent levels and functional expertise, they bring all as COO and VP, we are bringing a legitimate case here which needs introspection. I have never suggested any changes in reporting of trading and other verticals, I am only trying to initiate the importance of levels within the organisation. So from a strategic perspective, can I bring the title Group COO since subsidiaries also report to him and acceptable to all. Larger the thoughts, clearer our stand, postures become easier. ASHIRVADHAMS, a revert on this is good for one and all. GNANA VEL.”
The SEBI order said, “It is not unusual that the whip of an arbitrary and dictatorial reign would cause any employee to be reluctant in filing a complaint against its top leader in fear of the repercussions. This is evident from the various anonymous complaints received by SEBI against Ramkrishna, from which these proceedings have emanated and various irregularities unearthed.”
Yet, Ramkrishna was made NSE’s MD and CEO in 2013 with a powerful politician in Delhi backing her, sources told BusinessLine. A forensic audit showed that only Ramkrishna and Subramanian were imaged/checked while the laptops assigned to them were disposed of as e-waste by NSE. Even their personal emails were not available for forensic audit.
Ramkrishna told SEBI that at the time, neither the compensation committee, NRC, nor the board of the NSE had ever raised any query in relation to these issues, nor was any issue in this regard ever brought to her attention. Ashok Chawla, a former bureaucrat in the Finance Ministry and then Chairman of NSE, accepted Ramkrishna’s resignation due to personal reasons and the board appreciated her sterling contribution to the growth of the organisation.
For all this, SEBI’s punishment to Ramkrishna is paltry. Ramkrishna has now been barred from capital markets for three years and SEBI has directed the NSE to forfeit the excess leave encashment of ₹1.54 crore and the deferred bonus of ₹2.83 crores.
Published on February 12, 2022
NSE
SEBI
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Feb 16, 2022
NEW DELHI: The federal government and Sebi are inspecting how former MD & CEO of the Nationwide Inventory Change (NSE) Chitra Ramakrishna was let off with none motion or penalties and the curious determination of the nation’s largest bourse to permit her laptop computer to be destroyed as e-waste when it contained essential proof, together with the IP handle of the mysterious guru advising the disgraced govt.
Apart from, among the appointments on the board and the hyperlinks of key NSE functionaries, with some distinguished authorities functionaries in the course of the UPA regime, are beneath the lens.
Whereas the Sebi order has dwelt into among the points, the function of the board and a few key functionaries has been questioned as they allowed Ramakrishna to exit by a resignation in December 2016 and the board even accorded its appreciation. Final week’s order pointed to “grave irregularities and misconduct” by Ramakrishna within the appointment of Anand Subramanian as chief strategic adviser and his re-designation as group working officer and adviser to MD with out following due course of.
Apart from, in violation of Sebi tips, the board went to the extent of allowing “extra go away encashment” for Ramakrishna, citing her “sterling contribution” to NSE’s progress, with out regulatory approval. She had cited private causes for resigning from the important thing put up.
What has raised eyebrows is the failure of the board to document the irregularities within the identify of “confidentiality and delicate info” whereas submitting a report back to Sebi, which got here after reminders from the regulator.
In truth, the NSE’s function in concealing info has additionally come beneath the lens as a matter introduced earlier than the chairman has not been recorded, together with these associated to Subramanian’s appointment and sharing of essential info by him and Ramakrishna with unknown individuals. Whereas the problem was not mentioned formally on the Sebi board assembly on Tuesday, there was some casual dialog round it, sources advised TOI.
Given the character of the allegations and the reputational injury to the NSE, a wider probe is being referred to as for, particularly one which covers an extended interval. Sources indicated that the federal government might subject a response over the subsequent few days. Sources stated {that a} cleanup on the NSE has been initiated and a brand new administration has been in place for some time, however the revelations level to irregularities that date again to 2013 and even previous to that with the findings towards Ramakrishna tumbling out in the course of the probe associated to the co-location rip-off that was allowed by the administration led by Ravi Narain, her predecessor.
On the similar time, sources indicated that in contrast to within the case of Chanda Kochhar, the place ICICI Financial institution requested for among the advantages paid to her to be refunded, it could be tough to make the identical case with Ramakrishna as pecuniary positive aspects haven’t been established and the Sebi order dwells into her failure to carry out her obligation correctly.
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NSE’s strange scandal shows what personal flaws & unchecked corporate power can do to institutions
February 15, 2022, 10:16 PM IST
February 15, 2022, 10:16 PM IST
Sugata Ghosh in Off the Beat, Economy, Edit Page, India, TOI
Sugata Ghosh
Sugata Ghosh is Associate Editor with ET
For years, the brilliant, elegant Chitra Ramkrishna, and her wary, calculating boss, Ravi Narain, a consummate networker, were the czars of the Indian stock market. On a long rope from bureaucrats and the finance ministry, they ran the largest bourse, National Stock Exchange (NSE), with absolute control – crushing rivals, stifling dissent and influencing policies of the market regulator Sebi. A near monopoly with overflowing coffers, NSE, a closely held company, positioned itself as a national public institution that was virtually beyond reproach.
With foreign investors betting more and more on the India story, NSE’s size and clout grew rapidly. Shareholders lapped up dividends, somnolent directors and loyalist lieutenants endorsed every decision, and Chitra (CEO) and Ravi (former CEO and later VC) were the toast of Corporate India.
Sugata Ghosh
Sugata Ghosh is Associate Editor with ET
For years, the brilliant, elegant Chitra Ramkrishna, and her wary, calculating boss, Ravi Narain, a consummate networker, were the czars of the Indian stock market. On a long rope from bureaucrats and the finance ministry, they ran the largest bourse, National Stock Exchange (NSE), with absolute control – crushing rivals, stifling dissent and influencing policies of the market regulator Sebi. A near monopoly with overflowing coffers, NSE, a closely held company, positioned itself as a national public institution that was virtually beyond reproach.
With foreign investors betting more and more on the India story, NSE’s size and clout grew rapidly. Shareholders lapped up dividends, somnolent directors and loyalist lieutenants endorsed every decision, and Chitra (CEO) and Ravi (former CEO and later VC) were the toast of Corporate India.
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