The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) imposed a ₹10 lakh penalty on Supriya Kothari for repeatedly failing to cooperate with its investigation into suspected insider trading in Wipro Ltd shares. According to an adjudication order released on Tuesday (October 13), the regulator found that Kothari failed to provide information and documents sought during the investigation despite repeated communications, summons and reminders. The proceedings concerned alleged violations of Sections 11C(3), 11C(6)(a) and 11C(6)(b) of the SEBI Act, 1992.
SEBI first sought information about Kothari and her trades in Wipro shares on September 5, 2025. The regulator subsequently issued three summons on September 16, September 23 and September 30, 2025, seeking required information and documents through email and speed post. According to the order, Kothari did not provide the information sought by the regulator. SEBI also approached her broker, ICICI Securities Ltd, in October 2025 to facilitate communication. On October 29, 2025, Kothari informed the broker that she was outside India and would provide the required details and documents within a week.
The regulator subsequently sent reminders on December 10, December 16 and December 24, 2025, but the information sought remained outstanding. As reported in the order, the adjudicating officer stated that "the noticee was deliberately not responding to the summons and was trying to dodge the proceedings." SEBI issued a show-cause notice (SCN) to Kothari, with an authorised representative seeking additional time to submit a reply on April 6, 2026, and undertaking to provide an authorisation letter. However, the required reply and authorisation letter were not submitted.
SEBI proceeded ex parte after Kothari neither filed a response nor attended the personal hearing offered through a notice dated April 27, 2026. The adjudicating officer noted that "the noticee failed to provide details/documents sought by SEBI during the course of investigation," concluding that relevant provisions of the SEBI Act had been violated. The order referred to observations by the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) in an earlier matter involving Vikas Gourihar Narnavar, stating that "it is a serious irregularity which hinders the investigations." SEBI imposed the ₹10 lakh penalty under Section 15A(a) of the SEBI Act, with Kothari directed to pay the amount within 45 days of receipt of the order through SEBI's online payment facility.
