Gautam Adani, chairman of India's Adani Group and one of the world's wealthiest individuals, has been charged in a U.S. federal court with orchestrating a massive bribery and fraud scheme, prosecutors said on Wednesday.
Adani and seven others are accused of paying more than $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials to secure solar energy supply contracts, according to an indictment unsealed in a New York court. The alleged scheme generated over $2 billion in profits for the defendants, the authorities said.
The indictment outlines a complex operation in which Adani and his co-defendants allegedly funneled payments through shell companies to influence officials and gain favourable treatment in lucrative renewable energy projects.
The charges are the latest controversy to hit Adani, whose business empire has faced heightened scrutiny following allegations of stock manipulation and fraud raised by US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research earlier this year.
Adani, ranked among the world's richest individuals by Forbes, has denied any wrongdoing in previous allegations and has repeatedly defended his business practices.
Prosecutors said the alleged bribery scheme distorted competition in India's solar energy market, allowing Adani Group to dominate the sector while sidelining rivals.
Further hearings in the case are scheduled for next month.
Mr Adani, a self-described introvert maintains a low profile, rarely speaking to media and often sends his lieutenants to front corporate events.
In Kenya, the High Court has blocked a Sh96 billion deal between the Adani Energy -a subsidiary of the Adani Group-- and the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (Ketraco), following a petition by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).
Under the deal signed in October, Adani Group will build and operate major transmission lines and substations at a cost of Sh96.68 billion for a lease period of 30 years.
In its petition, the LSK argued that the agreement was arrived at in an opaque manner, lacked meaningful public participation and was marred in secrecy.
Kenya has turned to the public-private-partnership model to fund capital-intensive power projects in a bid to expand the transmission network that is characterized with aging power lines
The Adani Group is also pushing for a 30-year lease to expand and operate the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), in a deal that has similarly been frozen by the High Court.
