Known to be close to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the businessman is suspected of having paid numerous bribes to Indian officials to obtain contracts.
Published on 21/11/2024 10:23
Updated on 21/11/2024 10:34
Reading time: 2min
Gautam Adani is once again suspected of fraud. American justice indicted the Indian energy magnate on Wednesday, November 20, for corruption, putting his conglomerate in difficulty which is collapsing on the stock market. Known to be close to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Gautam Adani, 62, is suspected of being involved in paying bribes to Indian officials to obtain solar energy contracts in India, to the detriment of investors in the United States.
At the opening of the Bombay Stock Exchange, the price of the holding company Adani Enterprises fell by 10% on Thursday while that of its subsidiary Adany Energy Solutions, directly targeted by American justice, lost nearly 20%. The latter decided to cancel a planned sale on the financial markets of debt securities denominated in US dollars.
According to Brooklyn federal prosecutor Breon Peace, the multi-billionaire is accused, along with seven co-defendants, of having participated between 2020 and 2024 in a bribe payment system of more than $250 million. Gautam Adani, one of his nephews at the head of the Adani Green Energy subsidiary, Sagar Adani, and a third manager are also being prosecuted for hiding “this system of corruption as they sought to raise funds from American and international investors”. Gautam Adani was charged with securities fraud and wire fraud.
Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi demanded the arrest of the energy tycoon. “But we know that won’t happen because Modi is protecting him”he said at a press conference in New Delhi. In a press release, the Adani group denied the accusations of the American prosecutor's office, describing the indictment of its boss and founder as “baseless”.
