JUDGMENT :

AJAY RASTOGI, J.

Civil Appeal No. 435 of 2007

1. The instant appeal is directed against the judgment and order dated 7th November, 2005 passed by the Division Bench of the High Court of Delhi, setting aside the finding returned by the learned Single Judge of the High Court under judgment dated 26th October, 2004. The Division Bench has arrived at a conclusion that in terms of Section 12(1) of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992 (hereinafter referred to as “the Act 1992”) a single registration with Securities and Exchange Board of India (hereinafter referred to as “SEBI”) is sufficient even if the stock broker has various memberships and functions from several stock exchanges and, therefore, will have to pay the fee for the initial registration with SEBI and, accordingly, set aside paragraph (vi) of Part A of the Circular dated 28th March, 2002 issued by SEBI.

Factual backdrop

2. SEBI has been established under provisions of the Act, 1992 with an object to protect the interest of investors in the securities market and to promote the development of, and to regulate the securities market. SEBI was created as a regulator to regulate the securities’ market whi