Adani Group Chairman Charged in U.S. Fraud and Bribery Case

Prominent Indian business figures, including Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani, face U.S. charges related to a large-scale bribery and fraud scheme. Indictments reveal efforts to deceive investors and bribe officials. The FBI leads the investigation, while Adani and associates maintain innocence until proven guilty.

In a major legal development, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York has unsealed a five-count criminal indictment against key Indian business leaders, including Gautam Adani, Chairman of the Adani Group. The charges, reported by Reuters, connect these executives to an extensive bribery and fraud operation.

U.S. prosecutors have accused Gautam Adani, along with Sagar R. Adani and Vneet S. Jaain, of orchestrating conspiracies to commit securities and wire fraud, as well as securities fraud linked to a multi-billion-dollar scheme. This scheme allegedly aimed to obtain funds from U.S. investors and international financial institutions through deceptive and misleading statements.

Additionally, former executives Ranjit Gupta and Rupesh Agarwal are accused of involvement in securities fraud related to a renewable-energy company listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Alongside them, Cyril Cabanes, Saurabh Agarwal, and Deepak Malhotra are charged with conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. As per the indictment, these executives orchestrated a stratagem to bribe Indian officials for lucrative contracts, deceiving international investors with false claims while impeding investigations by U.S. authorities.

(With inputs from agencies.)