Just days after filing a lawsuit in a New York court, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has served summonses to Gautam Adani, the founder and chairman of Adani Group, and his nephew Sagar Adani, the executive director of Adani Green, in connection with a bribery case.
The summons, issued on November 21, states: “You must provide an answer to the attached complaint or file a motion under Rule 12 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure within 21 days after being served. Failure to do so will result in a default judgment against you, and you will be subject to the relief sought in the complaint.” The notice also stipulates that the response must be filed with the court.
This summons marks the beginning of legal proceedings against the Adanis, who are accused of paying $265 million (approximately Rs 2,200 crore) in bribes to government officials across several Indian states, including Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, and Jammu & Kashmir. The bribes were allegedly paid to secure power purchase agreements from the state-owned Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), which awarded the Adani Group contracts to generate solar power and manufacture related cells and modules.
Adani Group has dismissed the accusations as unfounded.
In a separate development, the U.S. Department of Justice has indicted Gautam and Sagar Adani, along with former executives from Canadian pension fund CDPQ and Azure Power. They face charges under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) for their alleged involvement in the bribery scheme.
