Indian billionaire Gautam Adani and seven other executives were indicted in New York on Wednesday by US prosecutors.
It's now pretty clear and established in America that Mr. Adani has broken both American and Indian laws. I'm wondering why Mr. Adani is still roaming free in this country, despite being accused of a 2000 crore scam and multiple others.
Meanwhile, Chief Ministers have been… pic.twitter.com/q6XF3eZRTx
— Congress (@INCIndia) November 21, 2024
They are accused of being involved in a multi-million-dollar bribery and fraud scheme to develop a major solar power plant. The Department of Justice (DOJ) said Adani and the other executives promised more than $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials.
The bribes were allegedly made to secure solar energy contracts.
The key player in this sordid Adani corruption scandal that has been fully exposed by US agencies is the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), a Govt of India company.
SECI had called for the bids from private companies and conducted the reverse auction for selecting the…
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) November 21, 2024
Shares in the Adani Group’s listed firms fell between 10% and 20% on Thursday, wiping out just under $30 billion in total market value. The Indian National Congress, a rival of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, has renewed calls for a parliamentary investigation into Adani’s companies.
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
The DOJ alleges the solar energy supply contracts were projected to raise more than $2 billion in profits after tax over about 20 years. Authorities say Adani, 62, personally met with an Indian government official to “advance” the scheme, which took place between 2020 to 2024. “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,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Lisa Miller.
Gautam Adani has been charged with fraud in the US, which has accused him of orchestrating a $250m (£198m) bribery scheme and concealing it to raise money in the US. https://t.co/BWa5pfBojR
— Om Thanvi | ओम थानवी (@omthanvi) November 21, 2024
Adani charged in US bribery scheme
The Adani Group called the allegations “baseless” and denied any wrongdoing in a statement. “We assure our stakeholders, partners, and employees that we are a law-abiding organisation, fully compliant with all laws,” said a spokesperson for the group.
Adani Green, which is building a renewable energy park in Gujarat, India, acknowledged the criminal and civil indictments. It stated that its subsidiaries have decided not to proceed with proposed USD denominated bond offerings worth $600 million. US authorities said Adani and his associates tried to hide the alleged bribery schemes from US investors to obtain financing.
They cited documentation, including a cell phone tracking details on the bribes and analyses summarizing options for paying and concealing bribe payments. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also charged both Adanis and an executive of Azure Power Global for the bribery scheme in a parallel civil case. The SEC said Adani Green raised more than $175 million from US investors based on misrepresentations.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs has yet to comment on the indictments. The Adani Group has been trying to restore its reputation for over a year following allegations of fraud by Hindenburg Research in January 2023.
