Mahesh Jethmalani Demands Probe into Chinese Links Behind Adani Controversy

Senior lawyer and BJP leader Mahesh Jethmalani has urged the government to investigate political figures targeting the Adani Group post-Hindenburg report, citing Chinese involvement. According to Jethmalani, this 'hit job' was retaliation for losing strategic projects, like Haifa Port, emphasizing China's influence in India's political landscape.

Senior lawyer and BJP leader Mahesh Jethmalani has called on the government to investigate the links between political voices targeting the Adani Group following the Hindenburg report, and China. He recently suggested a Chinese influence behind the American short seller Hindenburg's report, which targeted the Indian conglomerate.

In January 2023, Hindenburg published a report accusing the Adani Group of financial irregularities, leading to a significant drop in the company's stock price. The Adani Group denied these claims at the time. Jethmalani alleged on Friday that the attack on the Adani Group was China's revenge for losing crucial infrastructure projects like Haifa Port.

Jethmalani emphasized the need for the Government of India to probe connections between prominent political voices who criticized the government before and after the Hindenburg report. He claimed this 'hit job' was due to Chinese vengeance for missing out on strategic projects, such as the Israeli port of Haifa.

In his post, Jethmalani expressed shock at some Indian politicians' anger over Adani’s success with the Haifa port project, crucial for the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), which competes with China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). He suggested that support for China's debt-trap initiative over IMEC implies certain political groups are aligning with Chinese interests.

He pointed to significant financial losses for retail investors due to actions by Chinese-American individuals allegedly involved in espionage for China in the US and called for a thorough investigation into those promoting Chinese interests in India.

Jethmalani also noted that The China Project and its founder, Anla Cheng, were known Chinese Communist Party lobbyists. He revealed that Cheng and her family profited substantially from short selling Adani stocks and questioned the origins and beneficiaries of these gains.

On July 5, Jethmalani claimed that Anla Cheng and her husband, Mark Kingdon, had hired Hindenburg to research Adani. He shared a detailed statement from Shanon Von Sant to the US Congress, raising concerns about who profited from the Adani stock short selling that severely impacted Indian retail investors.

Earlier, on July 15, the Supreme Court dismissed a petition for a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into the Adani-Hindenburg issue. The Supreme Court found no error in its earlier judgment dismissing allegations of stock manipulation by Adani.

The January 24 Hindenburg report alleged stock manipulation and fraud by the Adani conglomerate. After these allegations, Adani’s share value dropped significantly. The Adani Group has consistently denied the charges and maintains compliance with all laws and disclosure requirements.