Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani. File
| Photo Credit: ANI

Adani Corporate House in Ahmedabad. File.
| Photo Credit: AP

Hours after a statement from the New York Eastern District court indicted Gautam Adani and the other board of directors of Adani group of companies of criminal and civil irregularities, the Adani group denied the allegations against Adani Green calling them baseless.

Also Read:Gautam Adani U.S. indictment LIVE updates

The apples to airport conglomerate said that they were innocent until proven guilty, referring to a line in the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) statement and added that they were ready to resort to “all possible legal recourse.”

“The Adani 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. We assure our stakeholders, partners and employees that we are a law-abiding organisation, fully compliant with all laws” the statement read.

Adani group’s response assumes significance as they had withdrawn their $600 million worth bonds issue in the U.S. hours before the statement was released.

Earlier in the day the DoJ in its statement indicted Gautam Adani, Sagar Adani and other board of directors in company on five counts ranging from civil case like securities fraud to criminal case like wire fraud, corrupt practices and obstruction of justice. The stocks of Adani’s seven listed companies in the bourses crashed about 10% on open, with Adani Energy Solutions falling the most.

Adani Enterprises Ltd stocks were at ₹2317 a piece, 18% lower than the previous close on the National Stock Exchange at around 2 PM on November 21.

File picture of BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya
| Photo Credit: PTI

The BJP on Thursday (November 21, 2024) targeted the Congress over its attack on the Central government after U.S. prosecutors charged industrialist Gautam Advani with bribery and fraud, saying all the States mentioned in the indictment were at that time ruled by non-BJP parties.

BJP’s IT department head Amit Malviya also questioned the timing of the development, as it came just before the start of Parliament session and Donald Trump’s impending presidency.

FOLLOW: Gautam Adani U.S. indictment LIVE updates

This raises several questions, he said. “That the Congress is willing to be a prop in the hands of George Soros and his cabal speaks volumes,” Mr. Malviya said on X in reply to Congress leader Jairam Ramesh’s claim that the indictment vindicates the Congress’s demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) investigation into the various “Modani scams”.

Citing from the U.S. federal prosecutors’s indictment, Mr. Malviya said the States where government officials were paid bribes allegedly by the Adani Group were Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh between July 2021 and February 2022.

He told Mr. Ramesh, “All the states mentioned here were Opposition-ruled during that time. So, before you pontificate, answer on the bribes the Congress and its allies accepted,” he said.

While Odisha and Andhra Pradesh were then ruled by the BJD and the YSR Congress, two regional parties unaffiliated to either the ruling or the opposition alliance at that time, the Congress ally DMK was and remains in power in Tamil Nadu.The Congress was in power in Chhattisgarh.

“Don’t get excited”

Taking a swipe at Mr. Ramesh, he said it is always good to read before one reacts and added that the U.S. document cited by the senior Congress leader said the charges in the indictment are allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

An Indian court, the BJP leader said, can similarly on legitimate grounds accuse American firms of bribing U.S. government officials to deny access to Indian markets.

“Should we then allow law to take its course and the concerned corporate to defend or plant ourselves in domestic politics of a foreign country,” he said, asking the Congress to not get needlessly excited.

Congress allegations

The Congress, especially the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, has constantly alleged proximity between the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Adani, claiming that the port-to-energy conglomerate has received undue favours from the BJP dispensation.

Mr. Adani has dismissed such suggestions. The BJP, too, has denied the allegations and noted that the Adani Group has invested heavily in many Opposition-ruled states as well.

Federal U.S. prosecutors have charged Mr. Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani and some other group officials for paying over $250 millions in bribe to Indian officials in exchange for favourable terms for solar power contracts.

U.S. prosecutors charged Mr. Adani, 62, his nephew Sagar and other defendants for paying over $250 million in bribes between 2020 and 2024 to Indian government officials to win solar energy contracts on terms that could potentially bring in more than $2 billion in profit.

The Adani group did not immediately respond to requests for comments.