Industrialist Gautam Adani has been acquitted of criminal charges in the US. His nephew Sagar Adani was also acquitted of all charges. All criminal fraud charges against them have been dropped. In addition, the Donald Trump administration has ‘settled’ the case of continuing to do business with Iran despite the sanctions.
But I am not relieved. Adani Group has committed to invest $10 billion in the US, which is about Rs 9.6314 crore in Indian currency. Gautam and Sagar Adani are believed to have been acquitted in exchange for such transactions.
The Adani Group was criminally prosecuted for using huge sums of money taken from the US market as bribes in exchange for contracts for India’s largest solar power project. Discussions were going on with the US government for a long time. Ultimately, the US Department of Justice cleared Adani Group of all charges.
The lawyer Gautam Adani has appointed as his lawyer in the US is also US President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer. He said that Adani Group is ready to invest Rs 10 billion in the US. However, they are unable to do so as the case is pending.
But the acquittal of the Adani group has sparked criticism within the US administration. The Adani Group was charged with criminal fraud under the Joe Biden administration. It is said that 3 billion dollars have been taken from the US market. However, the Adani Group completely covered up the issue of corruption.
The US Treasury Department has also alleged that Adani Group bought liquefied petroleum gas from Iran to avoid sanctions. To settle the case, they agreed to pay $275 million, which is about Rs 2,647 crore in Indian currency.
The US claimed that the Adani Group purchased LPG worth around $191 million (about Rs 1,839 crore in Indian currency) through a Dubai-based company. The LPG is claimed to have come from Oman and Iraq but in fact the LPG was purchased from Iran. The US Securities and Exchange Commission said the bribery issues had also been settled. However, the seal of the court has not yet fallen.
Adani’s closeness with Prime Minister Narendra Modi was also questioned at the time. Even Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi accused Modi of compromising with the US to get Adani out of the case.
Recently, when news broke that Adani had invested in the US to get out of the case, other leaders of the opposition camp, including Rahul, talked about Modi’s role. “This is not a trade deal. The compromise prime minister has signed a deal to free Adani,” Rahul said.
