The Congress party on Friday launched a sharp attack on the Narendra Modi government over interim findings of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) against Rajesh Exports, alleging that the case exposed what it described as the BJP’s “crony capitalist model” and raised serious questions about regulatory oversight in the country.
Addressing a press conference, Congress leader and AICC Chairman of the Media and Publicity Department Pawan Khera cited SEBI’s interim order and claimed that the findings pointed towards “one of the largest financial misrepresentation scandals in India’s corporate history.”
Khera said that according to SEBI’s interim observations, approximately Rs 15.15 lakh crore of “misrepresented consolidated revenues” were reported by Rajesh Exports between FY21 and FY25, raising concerns about the integrity of disclosures made to investors, regulators and the public.
“If these findings are sustained, this is not merely a corporate governance failure—it is a damning indictment of the Modi government’s regulatory architecture, which has repeatedly prioritised the interests of a few favoured corporates over the protection of ordinary investors,” Khera said. “We have seen this script to dupe ordinary investors in past cases.”
The Congress leader linked the issue to broader concerns repeatedly raised by the opposition regarding the functioning of regulatory institutions. Referring to Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s past remarks, Khera said Gandhi had warned that an “economic tsunami” was building beneath what he described as the BJP’s narrative of economic success.
“He has cautioned that institutions meant to protect citizens and investors are being hollowed out, accountability mechanisms are being weakened, and crony capitalism is replacing transparent market governance. The Rajesh Exports episode appears to be yet another example of the dangerous consequences of this model,” Khera said, adding that the BJP had made India’s “long-standing integrity in economic matters a laughing stock for the world.”
Detailing the allegations cited in SEBI’s interim order, Khera said the regulator’s investigation began after complaints were received regarding unusually large receivables that remained unpaid for extended periods. According to the Congress leader, SEBI found that between FY21 and FY25, around 97-99 per cent of the group’s reported revenues originated from overseas subsidiaries and step-down subsidiaries.
He said that Valcambi SA, the Swiss gold refinery acquired by Rajesh Exports and often described as the group’s principal operating business, became a central focus of the investigation. Khera alleged that SEBI had identified a significant mismatch between revenues reported by Valcambi and those reflected in the consolidated financial statements of Rajesh Exports.
Citing the regulator’s observations, he said that in one period Valcambi reportedly recorded revenues of about Rs 543 crore while the consolidated group reported revenues close to Rs 2.9 lakh crore. He further claimed that SEBI had stated that nearly Rs 15.15 lakh crore of revenues reported over five years could not be adequately verified through supporting records and documentation.
Khera alleged that investigators and forensic auditors were repeatedly denied complete access to transaction-level records, enterprise resource planning systems, customer-wise sales data, supplier records, inventory movement details, debtor information and creditor records. He also referred to SEBI’s rejection of the company’s argument that Swiss confidentiality laws restricted disclosure, saying the regulator had maintained that such provisions could not override obligations under Indian securities regulations.
The Congress leader further highlighted questions raised by SEBI regarding approximately Rs 1,035 crore allegedly invested in African mining assets, as well as transactions worth Rs 11,488 crore involving Affluence Shares and Stocks Pvt Ltd, where the regulator reportedly found inconsistencies regarding the authenticity of the transactions.
Khera also pointed to observations concerning the alleged routing of company-related funds through promoter Rajesh Mehta’s personal bank accounts and said these raised serious concerns about transparency, governance and transaction traceability. He noted that SEBI had estimated a potential shareholder wealth erosion of approximately Rs 12,726 crore and had ordered a fresh forensic audit while imposing interim restrictions on the promoter.
The Congress leader argued that the case carried wider implications because the government has frequently projected India’s regulatory ecosystem as robust and globally respected. He drew parallels with controversies raised by the opposition in recent years, including allegations surrounding the Adani-Hindenburg episode and questions over regulatory independence during the tenure of former SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch.
“Parliament and the Opposition’s demands for a transparent Joint Parliamentary Committee investigation into corporate-regulatory relationships were consistently stonewalled,” Khera said. “The BJP cannot selectively invoke SEBI when it suits its political interests and discredit concerns whenever influential corporate entities come under scrutiny.”
Khera also noted that it was a matter of public record that Narendra Modi, before becoming Prime Minister, had publicly engaged with and visited Rajesh Exports facilities in the United States while promoting investment and business partnerships abroad.
The Congress posed five questions to the government, asking how a listed company could allegedly report such large revenues over several years if underlying transactions and records were unavailable for verification. It also questioned the role played by agencies such as the Financial Intelligence Unit, the Serious Fraud Investigation Office, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, the Enforcement Directorate, the Central Bureau of Investigation and SEBI in monitoring overseas subsidiaries that accounted for most of the company’s reported revenues.
The party further sought explanations for why warning signs relating to receivables, subsidiary disclosures and transaction verification were allegedly not detected earlier, and whether any complaints, whistleblower inputs or regulatory red flags had been brought to the attention of the government before SEBI initiated its investigation.
“Rajesh Exports has collapsed from nearly Rs 900 to around Rs 100, wiping out small investors, while most major institutional investors had already exited long before SEBI’s findings became public,” Khera said. “Did powerful players see the warning signs and escape early while ordinary investors were left to suffer the consequences of alleged fraud and regulatory failure?”
The Congress also asked whether the Prime Minister, Home Minister, Finance Minister and Commerce Minister would accept responsibility if the allegations contained in the regulator’s findings were eventually established.
Khera further said the public deserved to know whether the matter represented a case of corporate misreporting or reflected deeper failures in regulatory oversight that allowed alleged discrepancies to persist for years.
“The Modi government cannot continue to preside over the steady erosion of trust in India’s financial institutions. Investors, shareholders, pensioners and ordinary citizens deserve regulators that are independent, vigilant and fearless—not institutions weakened by political interference and proximity to powerful crony corporate interests,” he said. “The country deserves answers.”