The SEC alleges false disclosures and a $265 million bribery scheme linked to Adani Green Energy’s 2021 bond offering, claims the Adani Group strongly denies.
BY PC Bureau
January 31, 2026 — The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has cleared a major procedural hurdle in its civil fraud lawsuit against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani, allowing the long-delayed case to advance in federal court.
In a joint filing submitted on Friday, January 30, 2026, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York (Brooklyn), the SEC and counsel for the Adanis agreed that the defendants would accept service of the complaint through their U.S.-based attorneys. This arrangement removes the need for U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis to rule on alternative service methods, such as email or other channels, which the SEC had sought earlier this month.
The agreement follows more than 14 months of delays in formally serving the summons. The SEC initially attempted service under the Hague Service Convention, submitting formal requests to India’s Ministry of Law and Justice in February 2025. However, the ministry reportedly returned the documents twice on procedural grounds, citing issues related to signatures, seals, and questions surrounding the SEC’s invocation of the treaty.
Facing these obstacles, the SEC filed a motion on January 21, 2026, seeking court approval for alternative service. Days later, on January 23, 2026, counsel for the Adanis agreed to accept service, waiving formal Hague Convention requirements while preserving all legal defenses, including challenges to personal jurisdiction.
US SEC finally serves summons to Gautam & Sagar Adani via their US lawyers in a ₹2,400 crore bribery case, after India’s Law Ministry twice refused to even pass on the notice on “procedural” grounds. pic.twitter.com/VPh1NEuCZV
— Shubham Gurule (@shubham_gurule) January 31, 2026
If approved by the court — a routine procedural step — the Adanis will have 90 days to respond to the complaint, either by filing a motion to dismiss or submitting formal pleadings. The SEC would then be given time to respond.
The civil lawsuit, filed in November 2024, alleges that Gautam Adani, chairman of the Adani Group, and Sagar Adani, an executive at Adani Green Energy Ltd. (AGEL), violated U.S. securities laws by making false or misleading statements in connection with a 2021 debt offering by AGEL that raised funds from U.S. investors. Offering materials reportedly emphasized robust anti-corruption safeguards.
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According to the SEC, those representations were undermined by an alleged scheme involving bribes or promises totaling approximately $265 million (₹2,200–2,400 crore) to Indian government officials to secure favorable solar power contracts for AGEL.
The civil action runs parallel to a criminal indictment filed by the U.S. Department of Justice, which accuses the Adanis and others of foreign bribery, securities fraud conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, and related offenses. No major public developments have been reported in the criminal proceedings over the past year.
Prominent Wall Street attorney Robert Giuffra Jr. of Sullivan & Cromwell is representing Gautam Adani, while other firms, including Nixon Peabody and Hecker Fink, represent Sagar Adani. Lawyers for both declined to comment.
The Adani Group has consistently denied all allegations, calling them baseless. In a stock exchange filing on January 31, 2026, AGEL stressed that the company itself is not a party to the proceedings, no charges have been filed against it, and the defendants face no violations of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The company described the acceptance of service as a purely procedural step and said the defendants intend to seek dismissal or file appropriate responses.
AGEL added that business operations continue normally, supported by a strong financial position and a continued commitment to corporate governance.
The resolution of the service dispute marks a shift toward substantive legal proceedings in the case, though the outcome remains uncertain. Gautam Adani, currently India’s second-richest individual with an estimated net worth of $59 billion, founded and chairs the diversified Adani Group conglomerate.
