SEBI considers revising duration for filing consent pleas
The market regulator is likely to decrease the time period for filing consent applications from two months to just two weeks, sources told the newspaper, reports Business Standard.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is mulling changes to the consent plea mechanism that is availed by accused offenders to settle their cases with the market regulator, the Business Standard reported.
SEBI is likely to decrease the time period for filing consent applications from two months to just two weeks, sources told the newspaper.
In the present framework, the accused has to submit the plea within two months of receiving a show-cause notice.
The consent mechanism lets an entity or individual, who is being investigated for alleged offences, settle the case by paying stipulated fees and other required charges without admitting to the offence or denying it.
The law had been made stricter so that major offenders cannot avail the option and bypass penalties.
If the reform takes place, it would result in faster settlements and less tedious legal proceedings that currently take up seven to eight months.
Nonetheless, SEBI would accept consent applications post the two-week period if sufficiently feasible reasons are cited behind the late submission. But late fees or interest on settlement fees may be incurred for the delay period.
