Last month, an arrest warrant was revealed in a New York court against Gautam Adani, following an indictment on bribery and fraud charges for the billionaire industrialist. India Today got access to the information about the arrest warrant, revealing that Judge Robert M Levy had it unsealed on October 31, 2024.
The unsealing of the indictment and arrest warrant aimed to distribute the documents to foreign law enforcement agencies. The US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York requested for the unsealing of the warrant.
Under American law, courts issue arrest warrants unless there is a strong belief that the accused will show up in court on their own.
The US Justice Department has alleged that Adani, along with his nephew and six others, paid $265 million (Rs 2,029 crore) in bribes to Indian government officials to secure solar power contracts with state electricity distribution companies. It is alleged that the bribes were paid from 2020 to 2024.
The US prosecutors alleged that the Adani Group hid this information from US banks and investors who provided billions for the solar energy project. The Adani Group aimed to make over $2 billion in profits over a 20-year period.
Even if the bribery charges involve Indian state officials, US law permits the pursuit of corruption cases if American investors or markets are implicated. The Adani Group has rejected the allegations as “unfounded” and stated that they will address the issue through legal means.
The core of the issue revolves around a deal made by Adani Green Energy and Azure Power to provide 12 gigawatts of solar power to SECI, a government-owned entity. Nevertheless, SECI faced challenges in attracting customers to buy the solar power because of the expensive costs.
