‘What we believe is…’: White House reacts after Gautam Adani charged with over USD 265 million bribery, fraud in US; Says ‘aware of…’
The Adani Group has strongly denied allegations made by US prosecutors that its founder, Gautam Adani, paid over USD 250 million in bribes, calling them "baseless."
The White House has expressed self belief in navigating the continued bribery allegations against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, who was once indicted in New York over his role in an alleged multibillion-dollar bribery and fraud scheme. Speaking at a press briefing, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre acknowledged the administration’s awareness of the prices. “Obviously we’re responsive to these allegations, and I would should refer you to the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) and DOJ (Department of Justice) about the specifics of those allegations against the Adani Group,” she said.
Adani is accused by US prosecutors of being keen on a scheme to pay over USD 250 million (approximately Rs. 2,one hundred crore) in bribes to Indian officials to secure favorable terms for solar power contracts.
“What I will say is on the U. S. and India relationship, we trust that it stands on an extraordinarily strong foundation anchored in ties between our people and cooperation across a full range of world issues,” Jean-Pierre added.
Advocating strong India-US ties, the White House press secretary said, “What we trust and we are confident about is that we’ll continue to navigate this issue as we have got with other issues which may most probably have come up as you only stated. And so the specifics of this, it will be something that the SEC and DOJ can speak to at once, but again, we trust that…this relationship between the 2 nations has been built on a strong foundation.”
Adani Group reacts to allegation
The Adani Group has strongly denied allegations made by US prosecutors that its founder, Gautam Adani, paid over USD 250 million in bribes, calling them “baseless.” The corporate’s statement comes amidst a sharp 23% drop in its shares on the Mumbai stock exchange, following a New York indictment accusing Adani of misleading international investors.
“The allegations made by the U. S. Department of Justice and the U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission against directors of Adani Green are baseless and denied,” the conglomerate stated, adding that it plans to pursue “all conceivable legal recourse.”
Meanwhile, opposition leaders in India have demanded the arrest of Gautam Adani as the scandal continues to garner significant attention.
What's Your Reaction?
