Feeling the heat?

You bet! All eyes are now on CA Institute President Ranjeet Kumar Agarwal as NFRA flexes its regulatory muscles, showing zero signs of backing down on the SA 600 revision. ICAI’s polite request to ‘pause’ the revision process appears rejected. The buzz is that the CA Institute might be left with only one move: heading to court to protect the interests of thousands of small practitioners. Their defence? Well, ICAI may have to argue that NFRA had no legal right to issue an exposure draft on an auditing standard and this activity according to the statute is entirely within the preserve of the CA Institute.

But here is the kicker — as if things were not already tense, NFRA dropped a bombshell of a draft SA 600 (revised) on the very same day the ICAI Council sat down to talk about SA 600 revisions. Talk about rubbing salt in the wound!

Fact check fizzles out

In a blow to the Centre, the Bombay High Court struck down the IT rule establishing a Fact Check Unit (FCU), calling it unconstitutional. The rule, meant to curb “fake news”, was deemed too vague and overreaching, violating constitutional provisions.

The court reminded the government that there is no “right to the truth” clause in the Constitution.

With intermediaries no longer under the FCU’s looming threat, it seems the Centre’s plan has been ‘checked’!

Invisible recusals

An RTI application seeking details of instances where SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch recused herself due to potential conflicts of interest hit a rather opaque wall. SEBI’s response: The information isn’t “readily available”, and compiling it would “disproportionately divert” resources.

One might wonder if they’re storing these recusals in a vault guarded by riddles and mythical creatures, a market observer quipped.

But wait, there’s more! When asked for copies of Buch’s declarations on financial assets and equities held by her and her family, SEBI invoked privacy concerns, suggesting that disclosure might “endanger” personal safety. In an era where trust is currency, perhaps a little less mystery and a bit more clarity would serve better. After all, if our market regulators start mastering the vanishing act, investors might just start disappearing too.