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ARTICLE · 05 FEBRUARY 2026

Due Process In The Dock: SEBI's Charge-Sheet Trigger Under Scrutiny

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The constitutional validity of charge-sheet-based disqualification under the Securities and Exchange Board of India's "fit and proper person" framework is presently under challenge before the Bombay High Court...

IndiaGovernment, Public Sector
Ayush Tandon
Ayush Tandon
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The Charge-Sheet Rule Under Judicial Review

This article has been published by BW BusinessWorld and can be accessed here.

The constitutional validity of charge-sheet-based disqualification under the Securities and Exchange Board of India's "fit and proper person" framework is presently under challenge before the Bombay High Court in a batch of writ petitions. The petitions assail amendments introduced in 2021 to the SEBI (Intermediaries) Regulations, which prescribe automatic disqualification upon the filing of a criminal charge-sheet by an enforcement agency in relation to specified economic offences, without awaiting adjudication, conviction, or even the commencement of trial. Significantly, SEBI has acknowledged before the Court that the impugned framework is under review and has indicated restraint in enforcement pending judicial consideration.

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