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The US Court’s indictment order and SEC complaint alleging Gautam Adani offered bribes to Indian government officials has now reached the Supreme Court, with a fresh plea seeking an investigation by Indian authorities. NSE The fresh plea in SC claims that the Indictment order and SEC complaint order have “unveiled malpractices carried out by the conglomerate”. The plea claims that the allegations raised are of “serious nature” and should be investigated by Indian authorities, in the “interest of the nation”.
The petition has been filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari. He was also the lead petitioner in the batch of pleas filed post the Hindenburg Report against Adani. The latest plea has flagged SEBI’s conduct, arguing that the findings of the SC-directed investigation into Adani has not been disclosed.
The plea argues that it reduces trust in the market regulator. In the Hindenburg case, in March 2023, SC had directed SEBI to probe Adani on charges of manipulation of stock prices, violation of Securities Contract Rules, and alleged failure to disclose related party transactions. The latest plea is seeking disclosure of findings from SEBI's probe to avoid investors' “losing confidence”.
The plea has cited the indictment order, which detailed an elaborate “bribery scheme” choreographed by Gautam Adani, Sagar Adani and Vneet Jaain, among others. The indictment order had claimed that Adani group was offering bribes of $265 million or ₹2236 crore. The plea submits that as per the US Court order, Gautam Adani personally met with government officials, proposing bribes.
The plea also cites how, as per the indictment order, Gautam Adani, Sagar Adani and Vneet Jaain misled the market and investors about their knowledge of the ongoing US investigation. As per the US order, Gautam Adani was aware of the Department of Justice probe in March of 2023, but Adani Green filed a letter with the BSE and NSE in March 2024, denying knowledge of the ongoing probe. Also Read: Adani Group CFO says certain disclosures about bribery probe were made in the US.
