SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
Securities & Exchange Board of India
Versus
Informetics Valuation & Rating (P.) Ltd.
CIVIL APPEAL NO. 291 OF 2012
FEBRUARY 19, 2013
ORDER
Surinder Singh Nijjar, J.
The present appeal under Section 15Z of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992 (“the SEBI Act”) is directed against the impugned judgment and final order dated 9th November, 2011 passed by the Securities Appellate Tribunal, Mumbai (“the SAT”), in Appeal No. 155 of 2011, by which the appeal filed by M/s Informetics Valuation and Rating Pvt. Ltd., (the respondent herein) was allowed, and the order dated 24th June, 2011 passed by the Whole Time Member of SEBI and communication dated 21st July, 2011 of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (“the SEBI”) was set aside. By the impugned order, the SAT has remanded the matter back to the appellant to consider the application of the respondent seeking registration as a Credit Rating Agency (“CRA”) without requiring the respondent to produce Audited Annual Accounts of the respondent’s promoters for the two years ending December, 2010.
2. We may notice here the skeletal facts which are necessary for the determination of the limited legal issue involved in this appeal.
3. On 11th June, 2009, the respondent submitted an application to SEBI under Regulation 3 of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Credit Rating Agencies) Regulations, 1999 (“the CRA Regulations, 1999”) seeking registration as a CRA. The respondent company was incorporated on 23rd June, 1986. The promoters of the respondent are stated to be:
