Gautam S. Adani, chairman of the Adani Group and a key figure in India’s ports and shipping sector, has been indicted along with seven other senior executives for their alleged roles in a massive bribery scheme tied to solar energy supply contracts.
The indictment, unsealed in a U.S. federal court in Brooklyn, accuses Adani and his co-defendants of orchestrating a scheme to pay over $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials. The aim was to secure contracts projected to generate over $2 billion in profits after tax over two decades.
“As alleged, the defendants orchestrated an elaborate scheme to bribe Indian government officials to secure contracts worth billions of dollars, and Gautam S. Adani, Sagar R. Adani, and Vneet S. Jaain lied about the bribery scheme as they sought to raise capital from U.S. and international investors,” said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace.
The charges against Adani and his co-defendants include conspiracies to commit securities and wire fraud, along with substantive securities fraud. According to FBI Assistant Director James E. Dennehy, the defendants also misled investors to raise capital based on false claims about the absence of corruption.
Investigators allege that between 2020 and 2024, the group engaged in personal meetings with government officials, used encrypted electronic messaging apps, and meticulously documented bribe payments to conceal their activities.
This scandal poses significant challenges for Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Limited (APSEZ), India’s largest private port operator, which manages 13 ports and terminals and handles a substantial share of the country’s cargo traffic. The indictment could lead to heightened scrutiny of APSEZ’s operations and disrupt India’s ambitious plans to expand its maritime infrastructure.
The revelations also risk undermining global investor confidence in one of India’s most influential business conglomerates and could have wider implications for the maritime and renewable energy sectors.
Copyright Ships & Ports Ltd. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit given to www.shipsandports.com.ng as the source.
