New Delhi: Senior advocate and former Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi on Wednesday said Gautam Adani, group's founder chairman, and his nephew Sagar Adani have not been charged with violation of the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in the indictment filed by US prosecutors in a bribery case. Rohatgi said while the charges mention that Adanis bribed Indian entities for solar power contracts, it doesn't mention the manner in which they were bribed, saying "I do not find a single name or detail in the chargesheet as to who has been bribed, in what manner, and which department he belongs".
'Not as Adani's spokesperson'
Rohatgi was sharing his views with the media regarding news reports on the indictment brought out by the US Department of Justice against Adani bosses and officials. "I am expressing my personal views and not as a spokesman for the Adani Group," Rohatgi said, adding that "he is a lawyer and has been appearing for the Adani Group in several cases".
Which counts are important
The senior advocate said he has gone through this indictment by the US court and there are five charges, and added that it is very important to note that count 1 and count 5 are more important than the others.
"But neither in count 1 nor count 5 is Mr Adani or his nephew charged. This is like a chargesheet that charges individuals for specific acts. Count 1 is against certain other persons minus the two Adanis," Rohatgi said, adding that it includes some officers and one foreign person.
'Conspiracy'
He said the first allegation is there is a conspiracy to violate the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and, in that, the Adanis are not named.
Rohatgi stressed that in count 5, which relates to obstruction of justice, the Adanis and their officers are not named. "The Adanis and others will respond to this chargesheet in the manner that they desire, they will also respond to stock exchanges. These are my personal views after taking a look at this chargesheet," he said.
Chargesheet lacks 'specifics'
"When you look at a chargesheet, it must be specific to say that "so and so" has done "such and such" acts, "so and so" has bribed certain individuals. But I do not find a single name or detail in the chargesheet as to who has been bribed, in what manner, and which department he belongs. I do not know how one can respond to this kind of chargesheet."
Last week, a US court indicted Gautam Adani, his nephew, and several others for allegedly planning to offer Rs 2,029 crore of bribes to state government officials in India for securing solar power contracts between 2020-2024. The US prosecutors claimed this fact was concealed from the US banks and investors from whom the Adani Group raised billions for the solar energy project.
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