Foreign Ministry On Adani Case
Adani Group is India’s largest infrastructure players with global operations
New Delhi:
India has not received any communication from the US on the legal matter involving Adani Group and the US Department of Justice, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in its weekly briefing today.
“We see this as a legal matter involving private firms and individuals and the US Department of Justice. Obviously, there are established procedures and legal avenues in such cases which we believe would be followed. The government of India was not informed in advance on the issue,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters in Delhi today.
“We haven’t also had any conversation on this particular matter with the US government,” Mr Jaiswal said.
He said any request by a foreign government for service of summons or arrest warrant is part of mutual legal assistance, but such requests are examined on merits.
“We have not received any request on this case from the US side,” the MEA spokesperson said. “This is a matter which pertains to a private individual and private entities. The government of India is not a part of it in any manner at this point in time.”
The US Department of Justice and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had issued an indictment and a civil complaint, respectively, in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani, and senior executive Vneet Jaain are clear of any bribery charges per the US Department of Justice, the Adani Group has already said.
Adani Green, a firm under the Adani Group, had also called media reports on the US legal matter as “incorrect”, in a stock exchange filing.
“Mr Gautam Adani, Mr Sagar Adani and Mr Vneet Jaain have not been charged with any violation of the FCPA in the counts set forth in the indictment of the US DOJ or civil complaint of the US SEC,” the Adani Group said in the statement, referring to the US Foreign Corruption Practices Act (FCPA).
The indictment by the Department of Justice includes five counts, but the first and fifth counts – conspiracy to violate the FCPA and conspiracy to obstruct justice – do not mention the three directors, Gautam Adani, Sagar Adani, and Vneet Jaain, the Adani Group said.
The Adani Group statement said that a “flawed understanding” of the US indictment by various media, foreign as well as Indian, has led to “incorrect and reckless reporting” that the three Adani Group directors faced corruption and bribery charges.
The US indictment relies only on claims that bribes were discussed or promised. It did not offer any evidence that Indian government officials received bribes from Adani executives, the group said.
Senior lawyer Mukul Rohatgi later said in a press conference that there’s no detail in the chargesheet about who has been bribed.
“The ill-founded US action and reckless false reporting have led to significant repercussions for the Indian conglomerate, such as international project cancellations, financial market impact, and sudden examination from strategic partners, investors, and the public,” said the Adani statement.
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