<p>Earlier this month, the SEC filed charges against Gupta, former head of consultancy McKinsey & Co. accusing him of giving inside information about Goldman Sachs to his friend and business partner Raj Rajaratnam.<br /><br />Sri Lankan born Rajaratnam, former head of the Galleon hedge funds, is on trial in a Manhattan federal court on 14 counts of insider trading. He has denied any wrongdoing.<br /><br />The SEC alleges that when he was a Goldman Sachs director, Gupta tipped Rajaratnam on Goldman earnings and the $5 billion Berkshire Hathaway investment, as well as other material, non-public information about the bank, which Rajaratnam then allegedly traded on.<br /><br />In a suit filed Friday in the same federal court where Rajaratnam is being tried, Gupta, 62, said the regulator should have filed a lawsuit instead.<br /><br />"Gupta denies all allegations of wrongdoing and stands ready to mount a defence against each and every one of the commission's charges," his lawyer, Gary Naftalis, said in the complaint.<br /><br />Gupta seeks a jury trial and to have the SEC barred from asking for civil penalties. He is also seeking a court order keeping the agency from pursuing its administrative claims.<br /><br />Under SEC rules, Gupta isn't allowed a jury trial in an administrative action, or the right to use federal court rules on discovery, which require the exchange of evidence with the government, Naftalis said.<br /><br />The suit argues that the SEC proceeding will deny Gupta a number of legal protections he would have in federal court, including a trial by jury.<br /><br />Gupta's lawyer has said Gupta did nothing wrong, and the new suit says "there is no plausible reason why Gupta would have deviated from a lifetime of probity and a career dedicated to safeguarding corporate confidences in favour of engaging in the significant and aberrational wrongdoing alleged."<br /><br />In addition to the complaints about the SEC's methods, the new suit reviews Gupta's background as the child of a teacher and a "prominent freedom fighter" in India, and notes that "he has devoted approximately half of his time to a number of significant public service commitments."</p>
<p>Earlier this month, the SEC filed charges against Gupta, former head of consultancy McKinsey & Co. accusing him of giving inside information about Goldman Sachs to his friend and business partner Raj Rajaratnam.<br /><br />Sri Lankan born Rajaratnam, former head of the Galleon hedge funds, is on trial in a Manhattan federal court on 14 counts of insider trading. He has denied any wrongdoing.<br /><br />The SEC alleges that when he was a Goldman Sachs director, Gupta tipped Rajaratnam on Goldman earnings and the $5 billion Berkshire Hathaway investment, as well as other material, non-public information about the bank, which Rajaratnam then allegedly traded on.<br /><br />In a suit filed Friday in the same federal court where Rajaratnam is being tried, Gupta, 62, said the regulator should have filed a lawsuit instead.<br /><br />"Gupta denies all allegations of wrongdoing and stands ready to mount a defence against each and every one of the commission's charges," his lawyer, Gary Naftalis, said in the complaint.<br /><br />Gupta seeks a jury trial and to have the SEC barred from asking for civil penalties. He is also seeking a court order keeping the agency from pursuing its administrative claims.<br /><br />Under SEC rules, Gupta isn't allowed a jury trial in an administrative action, or the right to use federal court rules on discovery, which require the exchange of evidence with the government, Naftalis said.<br /><br />The suit argues that the SEC proceeding will deny Gupta a number of legal protections he would have in federal court, including a trial by jury.<br /><br />Gupta's lawyer has said Gupta did nothing wrong, and the new suit says "there is no plausible reason why Gupta would have deviated from a lifetime of probity and a career dedicated to safeguarding corporate confidences in favour of engaging in the significant and aberrational wrongdoing alleged."<br /><br />In addition to the complaints about the SEC's methods, the new suit reviews Gupta's background as the child of a teacher and a "prominent freedom fighter" in India, and notes that "he has devoted approximately half of his time to a number of significant public service commitments."</p>