The Adani Group on Wednesday said its chairman and billionaire Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani have not been charged with any violations of the United States Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in the bribery case indictment filed by US authorities.
The US Department of Justice has charged Gautam Adani, founder and chairman of the Adani Group, along with his nephew Sagar Adani and key executive Vneet Jaain.
They are accused of being involved in a scheme to bribe Indian officials with USD 265 million to secure contracts for solar electricity supply, potentially yielding USD 2 billion in profits over the next 20 years.
Adani Green Energy Limited, the company implicated in the bribery allegations, clarified in a stock exchange filing that reports suggesting the three individuals were charged with FCPA violations “are incorrect.”
The charges they face are related to offenses that could lead to a monetary fine or penalty.
“Gautam Adani, Sagar Adani and 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. These directors have been charged on three counts in the criminal indictment, namely (i) alleged securities fraud conspiracy, (ii) alleged wire fraud conspiracy, and (iii) alleged securities fraud,” the filing said.
A criminal indictment has been filed by the US Department of Justice in the case against Gautam Adani, Sagar Adani, and Vneet Jaain before the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
In response, the Adani Group has denied all allegations and confirmed its intent to pursue all available legal recourse to defend itself.
“The indictment does not specify any quantum of any fine/penalty,” the company said.
The civil complaint alleges that the executives violated certain sections of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Act of 1934, and aided and abetted Adani Green Energy Limited’s violation of the Acts, it said.
“Although the complaint prays for an order directing the defendants to pay civil monetary penalties, it does not quantify the amount of penalty,”it added.