India, Feb. 9 -- Why has the investigation into a mega scam involving a huge sum of money gone around in circles rather than reach a conclusion? Whose are the hidden hands behind such a lack of targeted action?

It has been more than two-and-a-half-years since the irregularities of top brokerage houses surfaced in the Rs 5,600 crore NSEL payment default, with Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the market regulator, slapping show-cause notices to them. But for some reason, no one is talking about penalising the broking entities. Is it that they are "too influential to touch"?

The five are among India's largest brokerages: Motilal Oswal Commodities, Anand Rathi Commodities, Geojit Comtrade, India Infoline Commodities and Philip...