Chitra Ramkrishna case: CBI meets SEBI officials

Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) met market regulator SEBI's officials last week at SEBI Bhawan in Mumbai in connection with former NSE chief Chitra Ramkrishna's case, top officials in the know of the matter told Business Today.

Officials added that the CBI wanted to understand more about the case and the recent order by SEBI. Its order, released last week, revealed how National Stock Exchange's (NSE) former MD and CEO Chitra Ramkrishna was sharing confidential data and information of the exchange with an unidentified person, who she claimed was a spiritual yogi dwelling in the Himalayas.

CBI was also briefed about who all were given sensitive information other than the spiritual yogi. The investigating agency will continue to question SEBI officials.

CBI has already questioned NSE's former chief executive officer (CEO) Ravi Narain and Ramkrishna in the case. Narain was the MD and CEO of NSE from April 1994 to March 31, 2013. The CBI has been probing the co-location scam since 2018. It had earlier registered an FIR against unknown SEBI officials for allegedly conspiring with the accused.

SEBI also found that the purported guru had substantial influence over the appointment of mid-level executives with no capital market experience as Ramkrishna's adviser, with inadequate documentation and a salary higher than most NSE officials. Chitra Ramkrishna was ousted from NSE in 2016 for her role in the co-location and Algo trading scam besides abuse of power.