The Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) got its statutory status on:

Question

Accepted Answer

The correct option is 2:
The Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) was initially established as a non-statutory body on April 12, 1988, under a resolution of the Government of India. However, it lacked the necessary legislative teeth to effectively regulate the rapidly growing and often erratic Indian securities market. The date **January 30, 1992**, is historically significant because it is the day the President of India officially promulgated the Securities and Exchange Board of India Ordinance. This Ordinance, which was later passed by Parliament as the SEBI Act of 1992, conferred full **statutory status** upon the board, giving it autonomous, comprehensive, and powerful regulatory authority over the stock exchanges and all market intermediaries. This move was crucial for protecting investor interests and ensuring the healthy development of the capital market.

The incorrect option is 1, 3, and 4:
The other dates listed—29 January, 1991, 29 January, 1992, and 30 January, 1991—do not correspond to the actual date the statutory powers were granted. Specifically, Option 3, **29 January, 1992**, is only one day shy of the correct date, but the statutory status came into effect with the official promulgation of the Ordinance on the 30th. Options 1 and 4, which are a year earlier in **1991**, are incorrect because SEBI was still operating as a non-statutory administrative body under the Ministry of Finance throughout that year. The year 1992 was the watershed moment, transforming SEBI from a mere market overseer into a full-fledged, legally empowered regulator, which is why precision in the date is essential in the study of financial market history.