Market regulator SEBI faces hundreds of unusual Right to Information queries each month, including requests for personal investment details, IPO NOCs, and misconduct allegations
Mumbai, July 11 – The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), tasked with maintaining market transparency and investor protection, is grappling with a new kind of challenge — a flood of strange and often intrusive RTI (Right to Information) requests. From spouses fishing for their partner’s investment details to complainants attempting to expose officials via RTI, the regulator’s information officers are spending increasing time filtering out misdirected, personal, or abusive applications.
A particularly bizarre RTI filed on April 26, 2025, sought complete financial and investment records of a man’s wife, including her DEMAT accounts, mutual fund holdings, trading activity, and even details of dividends and FDRs. The Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) responded that SEBI does not maintain such personal records, and the appeal filed was summarily rejected.
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RTIs Turn Into Misuse Tool – Appeals Filed Even for Public Domain Info
Another RTI, dated May 26, 2025, sought guidance on how to formally file a corruption complaint against a SEBI official, accusing her of defending a Depository Participant from regulatory action. The applicant demanded to know if the report should go to the SEBI Chairman, Chief Vigilance Officer, Anti-Corruption Bureau, or Finance Ministry. SEBI responded that the relevant information was already available on its website.
Despite this, the applicant filed an appeal alleging denial of information, which was rejected again since the requested content was publicly accessible — a recurring reason for rejection. One RTI even sought procedural details for initiating a corruption case against a named SEBI officer, highlighting how the RTI channel is increasingly used to raise grievances, not just seek records.
Repeated RTI Filers and IPO NOC Hunters Flood the System
SEBI has also flagged the rising trend of habitual RTI filers — individuals who submit dozens to hundreds of applications, often seeking duplicate or irrelevant information. One such applicant repeatedly asked for copies of NOCs or permissions granted to companies like Belrise Industries, Ather Energy, Tech Mahindra, HDFC AMC, RNEL, and others related to IPO approvals.
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Despite consistent replies from SEBI clarifying that such documents are not maintained or shared by the regulator, the applicant persisted with new RTIs, leading the appellate authority to label it as “misuse and abuse of the RTI Act.” One complainant reportedly filed 578 RTIs over time.
SEBI Handles Over 6,000 RTI Queries Annually – SCORES Portal Often Misused Too
According to SEBI’s own annual report, the regulator receives 150–300 RTI applications per month, totaling around 6,500–17,000 queries annually, along with 300–800 appeals. In many cases, RTIs are wrongly filed as complaint mechanisms, for which SEBI has a dedicated redressal platform — the SCORES portal.
Shailesh Gandhi, former Chief Information Commissioner, acknowledged that public authorities should share information freely within the limits of the RTI Act, including respecting privacy and intellectual property boundaries. However, he emphasized that citizens are entitled to seek information on national assets, provided the intent is informational and not interrogative.
“Many RTIs are rejected because they’re framed like questions rather than information requests. Also, asking for data already available in public domain will likely not yield a response,”
said an RTI expert.
Advisory to RTI Applicants: Know the Limits, Use Online Mode
RTI consultants and legal experts advise individuals to:
Avoid seeking personal details (e.g., financial records of others)
Frame RTIs as requests, not interrogations
Identify the correct authority that holds the information
Avoid repetition and misuse to prevent rejection or blacklisting
Use the https://rtionline.gov.in portal for faster processing
As India’s transparency framework continues to evolve, SEBI’s experience reflects the fine balance between access and accountability — one that gets tested with every curious or overreaching RTI filed.
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