By Jayshree P Upadhyay
MUMBAI (Reuters) – India’s markets regulator on Monday withdrew comments saying “outside elements” instigated complaints of a toxic work environment by its employees, and said it would address the issues “amicably and internally.”
Last month, 500 employees of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) wrote to India’s federal finance ministry saying there was “immense pressure” at the regulator, resulting in a “stressful and toxic work environment”.
The regulator had then responded by saying that claims of an unprofessional work culture were “misplaced”.
It also said that some “outside elements” instigated its employees to believe that they should not be required to have high standards of performance and accountability, which led to protests and demands of a withdrawal.
“SEBI believes that its employees have played a critical role over the past thirty-six years in shaping the Indian securities market into one of the most dynamic and well-regulated markets globally,” it said in a press statement.
The differences between SEBI leadership and its employees come at a time when its chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch is facing allegations of conflict of interest from U.S. short-seller Hindenburg Research and the country’s opposition political parties, and is facing demands of resignation.
(Reporting by Jayshree P Upadhyay; Editing by Varun H K)
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