CFMA accuses AMFI of protecting Franklin Templeton MF against EOW FIR

Chennai, Oct 1 : The Chennai Financial Markets and Accountability (CFMA), an investor group, on Thursday accused the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI), a nodal association of mutual funds across India, of protecting Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund (FTMF) and its senior management against an FIR registered with the Economic Offences Wing of Chennai Police.
The CFMA alleged that the AMFI, the body claims to protect and promote the interests of mutual funds and their unitholders, has been a mute spectator ever since the FTMF scam ballooned to a whopping Rs 28,000 crore broke in April this year, and has now suddenly rushed to defend the indefensible fund house by calling an FIR registered against it as “dangerous and undesirable precedent.” The AMFI has urged market regulator SEBI to intervene in the matter since it has “vast jurisdiction containing administrative, civil and penal domains” and prevent the case from “getting translated into a criminal investigation.” Notably, it further requested the SEBI to exercise its statutory powers to shield one of its members – FTMF – and to insulate the MF industry from any undesirable and unwarranted precedent.
By covering up the misdeeds of FTMF’s and not saying even a word in favour of the unitholders, the CFMA said, the AMFI has failed to address the grievances of investors aggrieved by the freezing of six of the debt funds of FTMF.
According to the CFMA, the AMFI is undermining a lawfully registered FIR against FTMF when it is not even privy to either the Forensic audit report or the internal management of FTMF unless its President Sanjay Sapre, who is on the Board of Association of National Exchanges of Members of India, has briefed the AMFI with sketchy details.
It noted that the AMFI, which is acting against the interests of FTFM unitholders, wants SEBI being the market regulator to govern and execute all actions, including criminal cases, whereas it is well known that such powers rest with the police to take cognizance of, and protect the rights of citizens who complain of financial loss by way of fraud and criminal breach of trust.