NEW YORK: U.S. regulator SEC has asked an appeals court to affirm a district court's decision that India-born former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta pay a $13.9 million penalty and be banned for life from serving as director of a public corporation.

The federal regulator has filed a brief in the U.S. court of appeals for the second circuit, saying the district court acted well within its discretion by permanently barring Gupta from associating with brokers, dealers, and investment advisors, permanently enjoining him from future violations of the securities laws and permanently barring him from serving as an officer or director of a public company.

65-year-old Gupta has been granted time till April 7 to file his reply to the SEC brief.

Gupta had, last year in November, asked the appeals court to overturn the district court's decision that ordered him to pay the $13.9 million penalty in the civil insider trading case filed against him by the SEC.

His lawyers had argued that the district court "abused" its discretion in imposing the statutory maximum civil penalty of $13.9 million, which is three times the $4.6 million in gains made by hedge-fund manager Raj Rajaratnam who traded on tips Gupta allegedly passed on to him.

The lawyers said the penalty was excessive in light of Gupta already facing a five-million-dollar fine and two year prison sentence in the criminal insider trading case.
READ MORE:
Indian American Teenager Wins U.S. Presidential Award
Indian Political Parties Woo Indians In U.S.