Sebi chief Ajay Tyagi may get another extension in Feb

NEW DELHI: Even as the government hunts for a new chairman for the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai), Sebi chairman Ajay Tyagi may be given a fresh extension as the markets regulator.


Tyagi opted for a VRS from the Indian Administrative Service to take over as Sebi chief in March 2017. He was initially appointed for three years, before receiving a six-month extension. He got a second term, which ends in February 2022, although the government had advertised for the post.


With age on his side, Tyagi is now tipped to get a third term, although there is hectic lobbying from some quarters to replace him. Among those seen in the reckoning is a former Sebi member.

Before joining the capital markets regulatory agency, Tyagi was additional secretary in the finance ministry handling the capital markets division.

While the Sebi chief still has over two months of his tenure left, Irdai has remained headless for seven months, at a time when the sector is grappling with challenges thrown up by the pandemic that has increased claims for life and general insurers, and pushed up the premium for policyholders.

While a secretary-rank officer at the Centre is tipped to take over as the new chairman, the government’s reluctance to appoint a full-time chief has come under the scanner. The previous chairman, S C Khuntia’s term ended on May 6, which the government knew well in advance but failed to move to appoint a successor. In fact, the government’s record on appointments in the financial sector have been questioned on several occasions, with many banks yet to get independent directors and chairmen for several months, raising doubts over corporate governance standards in state-run lending agencies that are crucial to government’s programmes.

It wasn’t until the government was pulled up by the Supreme Court that it appointed members of the NCLT.