'States Mentioned Were Opposition Ruled': BJP Hits Back At Congress Over US Charging Adani In 'Bribery' Plot

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday (21 November) hit back at Congress over the indictment of Gautam Adani and others in the United States in an alleged bribery plot.

Gautam Adani, the chairman of the Indian multinational Adani Group and one of the world's richest people, has been indicted in New York for his alleged involvement in a multibillion-dollar bribery and fraud scheme, US prosecutors said on Wednesday (20 November).

US authorities stated that Gautam Adani and seven other co-defendants, including his nephew Sagar Adani, allegedly agreed to pay around $265 million in bribes to Indian government officials to secure contracts expected to yield $2 billion of profit over 20 years, and develop India's largest solar power plant project.

Responding to Gautam Adani indictment in US, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said it "vindicates" the party's demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee investigation into the various "scams" involving his conglomerate.

"The indictment of Gautam Adani and others by the Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) of the US vindicates the demand that the Indian National Congress has been making since Jan 2023 for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) investigation into the various Modani scams," Ramesh said in a post on X.

In a separate post, Ramesh said the US indictment alleges that “on several occasions, Gautam S Adani personally met with an Indian government official to advance the Bribery Scheme” and claims to have electronic and cellular phone evidence of this.

"All of this is consistent with a long record of fraud and criminality carried out with impunity with the obvious protection of the Prime Minister," he added.

Responding to Ramesh, BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya asked Congress to first read the indictment document.

"It is always good to read before one reacts. The document you quote says, “The charges in the indictment are allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.”... the Adanis (in collusion with Azure Power; a US firm) paid the equivalent of US $265 million to SDCs based in Odisha (BJD ruled), Tamil Nadu (DMK), Chattisgarh (Congress) and Andhra Pradesh (YSRCP) between Jul 21 and Feb 22 (by far the largest to AP)," Malviya said.

"All the States mentioned here were Opposition ruled during that time. So, before you pontificate, answer on the bribes the Congress and its allies accepted," he said.

"Don’t get needlessly excited. The timing of the report, just before the Parliament session and Donal[d] Trump’s impending Presidency raises several questions. That the Congress is willing to be a prop in the hands of George Soros and his cabal speaks volumes," Malviya added.

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