Investors seek Chidambaram's resignation, Damodaran's suspension

Ahmedabad, May 22 (UNI) Investors in Gujarat, which contributes almost 30 per cent of market capitalisation, have demanded Union Finance Minister P Chidamabaram's resignation and SEBI chairman M Damodaran's suspension for their ''failure'' to check the retail investors' run-off.

All Gujarat Investors Protection Trust (AGIPT), which had earlier sprang into action during the recent demat scam to expose the main scamsters, today demanded an impartial inquiry for identifying and punishing the real culprits in today's market crash.

They burnt an effigy of Mr Chidamabaram near the Ahmedabad Stock Exchange (ASE), shouting slogans against alleged official ommission and commission.

''The ongoing wide fluctuations in the market is just not possible without the consent or knowledge of the government or regulator,'' Mr Zala of AGIPT told UNI.

''Contrary to the Finance Minister's claim, the sensex tumbling by a whopping 1,111 points or 10 per cent within a few hours of trading does not reflect strong fundamentals. Though halted a bit later in the day, it is no solace,'' he said.

Mr Zala expressed fears that such steep slidedowns would crush the investors' backbone as it might unnerve the latter's confidence on the system.

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