November 08, 2022
Summary of the Master Circular issued by SEBI on 07/11/2022
Master Circular on the redressal of investor grievances through the SEBI Complaints Redress System (SCORES) platform
Key highlights of the circular are as follows:
1. Grievance Redressal Hierarchy: It is now mandatory for investors to first take up their grievances for redressal with the entity concerned, through their designated persons/officials who handle such issues relating to compliance and redressal of investor grievances. In case, the entity concerned fails to redress the complaint within the stipulated timeline, the investor may then file their complaint in SCORES.
2. Pre-requisites to lodge a complaint in SCORES platform: The complaint shall be lodged on SCORES within one year from the date of cause of action, only when the listed company or registered intermediary / MII, as the case may be, when approached by the complainant has rejected the complaint or the complainant has not received any communication from the concerned listed company or the registered intermediary / MII or the complainant is not satisfied with the reply received or the redressal action taken.
3. SEBI reserves its right to reject a complaint lodged on SCORES, if the date of cause of action is more than one-year-old and/or the complainant has not taken up the complaint with the concerned entity prior to the said date.
4. Where a complainant is not satisfied with the extent of redressal of grievance by the concerned listed company/ intermediary/ MII, the complainant can avail a one-time ‘Review’ option under SCORES, within 15 days from the date of closure of the complaint on SCORES.
5. This circular has also notified the exclusion list of complaints that will not be dealt through SCORES including complaints against a Company going through resolution process under IBC, against the companies under liquidation etc.
6. This circular also details the procedure and timelines for handling of complaints by stock exchanges against the listed companies and the action that will be taken by the exchanges in case of failure in redressal of investor grievance by such listed companies, which could also lead to freezing the entire shareholding of the promoter(s) in such listed company as well as all other securities held in the demat account of the promoter(s), in case where the non-compliance continues beyond 86 days from the receipt of the complaint in SCORES.
7. SEBI requires the exchange to forward the details of the non-compliant listed entities for initiating necessary action, in cases where the exchange has exhausted all the prescribed options and yet the number of pending complaints exceed 20 or the value involved is more than Rs 10 lakh.
Click here to view SEBI Master Circular
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