AMERICAN prosecutors in New York have indicted Indian businessman Gautam Adani, chairman of the Adani Group, his nephew Sagar Adani and six others for allegedly offering bribes worth $265 million (INR 2,029 crore) to government officials in his country to secure solar energy contracts “at the expense of US investors”.
A press release issued by the US Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York, quoted Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the US Justice Department’s Criminal Division Lisa H Miller as saying, “This indictment alleges schemes to pay over $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials, to lie to investors and banks to raise billions of dollars, and to obstruct justice.”
“These offenses were allegedly committed by senior executives and directors to obtain and finance massive state energy supply contracts through corruption and fraud at the expense of US investors. The Criminal Division will continue to aggressively prosecute corrupt, deceptive, and obstructive conduct that violates US law, no matter where in the world it occurs.”
The other six defendants named are Vneet Jaain, chief executive officer of Adani Green Energy Ltd; Ranjit Gupta, a former CEO of Azure Power Global Ltd; Rupesh Agarwal, who worked with Azure Power in 2022-23; and Cyril Cabanes, Saurabh Agarwal and Deepak Malhotra, all former employees with a Canadian institutional investor.
While the alleged criminal activity outlined in the indictment took place in India, the defendants are charged by a court in Brooklyn because of alleged actions in connection with the bribery scheme and capital-raising efforts that happened within the Eastern District of New York.
US’s SEC charges Adani & two others
Parallelly, the US’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged the 62-year-old businessman and two other executives, Sagar Adani and Cyril Cabanes, over conduct arising out of a major bribery scheme.
A spokesperson of Adani Group called the allegations baseless, saying the defendants are presumed innocent “unless and until proven guilty”.
Know more: https://t.co/uNYlCaBbtk pic.twitter.com/fQ4wdJNa9d
— Adani Group (@AdaniOnline) November 21, 2024
It said that the group “has always upheld and is steadfastly committed to maintaining the highest standards of governance, transparency and regulatory compliance across all jurisdictions of its operations.”
The allegations led to panic selling across the company’s stocks, marking the worst trading day since the Hindenburg Research report fiasco early last year. The group’s stocks lost Rs 2.37 lakh crore ($22.1 billion) in market value in just two days in January 2023, after the Hindenburg accused it of stock manipulation, accounting fraud and misuse of tax havens.
Political war breaks out in India
A political war broke out between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the opposition Indian National Congress hours after Gautam Adani faced the charges in the US. The Congress, which has always accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of shielding Adani, sought yet again a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) investigation into the Adani Group’s transactions.
Senior Congress leader and its general secretary in-charge, communications, Jairam Ramesh, said the indictment of Adani and others by US watchdog SEC validated his party’s demand for a JPC probe. The opposition party has been seeking the investigation since early 2023, raising concerns over alleged irregularities involving the Indian businessman and his dealings, Ramesh added.
The indictment of Gautam Adani and others by the Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) of the US vindicates the demand that the Indian National Congress has been making since Jan 2023 for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) investigation into the various Modani scams. The…
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) November 21, 2024
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said on X, “When a top ranking Indian businessman is indicted by a foreign country, it tarnishes our image at the global stage.”
When a top ranking Indian businessman is indicted by a foreign country, it tarnishes our image at the global stage.
The Indian National Congress has been continuously objecting to unethical business practices which profiteer and promote certain individuals by implementing Modi…
— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) November 21, 2024
Amit Malviya, the BJP’s IT cell chief, hit back at the criticism saying on X the charges in the indictment are only allegations and the defendants remain innocent unless and until proven guilty.
It is always good to read before one reacts. The document you quote says, “The charges in the indictment are allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.”
But be as it may, the essence of the charge is that US and Indian companies agreed… https://t.co/Y3UivigtTx pic.twitter.com/MkMri2fPQs
— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) November 21, 2024
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