Israel’s ambassador to India, Reuven Azar on Thursday encouraged India’s Adani Group to keep investing in the country. He reassured that Israel fully supports the ports-to-media conglomerate, despite the bribery allegations against its billionaire founder in the US. Azar emphasised that these allegations were not seen as an issue by Israel.
The Adani Group clarified that its chairman Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani, and senior executive Vneet Jaain have not been implicated in any bribery charges per the US Department of Justice. In a filing with the stock exchange, Adani Green, part of the group, stated that none of the three individuals had been charged with violating the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) as outlined in the US DOJ’s indictment or the SEC’s civil complaint. The charges in question did not mention the three Adani executives.
The Adani Group responded to media reports, stating that a misunderstanding of the US indictment by both foreign and Indian outlets led to inaccurate and irresponsible claims that the three directors were facing corruption or bribery charges. The indictment, according to the group, only references discussions or promises of bribes without presenting any evidence that the Indian government officials were bribed by Adani executives. Senior lawyer Mukul Rohatgi also highlighted that the charges did not specify any individuals who had been bribed.
The Adani Group further expressed concern that these misleading reports had caused significant harm, including project cancellations, market instability, and scrutiny from investors and partners.
However, the US District Court indictment identifies several senior officials from the Adani Group in connection with a bribery scheme. According to the indictment, starting around 2020, Ranjit Gupta and an unnamed co-conspirator worked with others, including Gautam Adani, Sagar Adani, and Vneet Jaain, to offer, promise, and pay bribes to Indian government officials. The purpose was to secure contracts for Indian state electricity distribution companies with SECI, benefiting both the Adani Group and associated U.S. entities.
Between 2021 and 2022, other individuals, including Cyril Cabanes, Saurabh Agarwal, Deepak Malhotra, and Rupesh Agarwal, joined the conspiracy. The indictment further alleges that the conspirators worked to conceal the scheme and obstruct investigations by the US authorities, including the FBI, SEC, and a grand jury in New York.