Monday showdown at SEBI: Ketan Parekh to face cross examination by Rohit Salgaocar before SEBI, and then proceed for holiday

Monday Showdown at SEBI: Ketan Parekh to face cross examination by Rohit Salgaocar before SEBI, and then proceed for holiday

Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has fixed the date of January 12 for cross examination of controversial former stock broker Ketan Parekh. A Singapore-based businessman, Rohit Salgaocar, had made a plea seeking cross examination of Parekh before appellate tribunal SAT, which had directed SEBI to fix a date and allow the cross examination.

The Special SEBI judge order dated January 1, also confirms that Ketan Parekh will face the cross examination. In court Parekh side said he will join the cross examination before SEBI. Order stated “applicant/accused submitted that accused is going to appear before the SEBI authority on the schedule date for the purpose of investigation”. Parekh had moved again to special SEBI court for permission to travel abroad between 15th January to 20th January to Sri Lanka for a holiday and Qatar during the period of 22nd January to 27th January 2026 for a marriage ceremony.

Sources said, the cross examination is expected before the SEBI Whole Time Member (WTM). WTM Kamlesh Chandra Varshney, had passed the ex-parte interim order in the front running case, last year, restricting trading of duo and disgorgement of illegal gains of Rs 65.77 crores.

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Rohit Salgaocar wants to cross examine Ketan Parekh on the ground that Parekh’s statements constituted a crucial link in the investigative material relied upon by SEBI. He called the cross examination as a fair opportunity to rebut the allegations that he had indulged in front-running through a web of accounts and by accessing non-public information (NPI) relating to the trading activity of large foreign clients.

In SAT, Salgaocar had refuted the allegations, stating that he had no knowledge of the alleged front-running scheme involving Ketan Parekh and others. He maintained that he had no role in the alleged misconduct of front-running and was in no manner acquainted with the front runners (FRs). He submitted that the alleged NPI received from the traders of the Big Client was merely forwarded to Ketan Parekh for the bona fide and legitimate purpose of identifying willing counterparties for the trades.

Salgaocar stated how Ketan Parekh used the alleged NPI was entirely beyond his control. At the relevant time, he had no reason to believe or suspect that Parekh would take or facilitate opposite positions based on such information.

In his defense, Salgaocar had asserted that there were no financial dealings with Ketan Parekh or the alleged front runners. He contended that the record contained no evidence whatsoever to indicate that Parekh or the alleged front runners had shared any purported gains from the alleged front-running activities with him.

In his plea to travel abroad in November before the Bombay High Court, Parekh tried to disassociate himself, on the issue of paying the Rs 27.06 crore part of the amount to be impounded as per the order, Parekh had said, its Salgaocar who is responsible for the deposit of wrongful gain and he was as a person jointly and severally liable to pay the said amount.

Out of the total amount of Rs 65.77 crore, the six other accused including the brokers in the case have deposited Rs 38.70 crore, and Rs 27.06 crore is still pending which is to be paid by Salgaocar and Parekh. Rs 27.06 crore is the amount of commission that Salgaocar earned for referring trades of big clients to brokers Motilal Oswal and Nuvama.

An email seeking comments from SEBI on the issue did not receive any response. In the normal course, SEBI does not respond to queries relating to ongoing investigation or to company or person specific matters.  Moneycontrol was the first to report that Rohit Salgaocar has moved SAT seeking cross examination of Ketan Parekh. 

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