The United States indictment order has brought the Adani Group under the scanner not just in America but also in India, where leaders from the opposition party have come out demanding a legal dig against those accused in the $250 million bribery scheme, including Gautam Adani’s nephew, Sagar Adani.
“As alleged, Gautam and Sagar Adani induced US investors to buy Adani Green bonds through an offering process that misrepresented not only that Adani Green had a robust anti-bribery compliance program...,” said the acting director division of enforcement at the US SEC, Sanjay Wadhwa.
Moreover, Sagar Adani used his phone to keep track of details of the bribes offered and promised to government officials, including the name of the state for which the bribe was offered and the amount of solar power those states would agree to purchase in return, the indictment order stated. It highlighted the role played by him in bribing officials to secure power deals. The order mentioned that he along with the Adani Group chairman bribed Andhra Pradesh government official, including the chief minister, in return for a power deal of 7,000 MW.
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“...the defendant Sagar R. Adani used his cellular phone to track specific details of the bribes offered and promised to government officials (the “Bribe Notes”),” stated the US court indictment order. “The bribe notes identified: (i) the state or region for which government officials had been offered a bribe; (ii) the total amount of the offered bribe; and (iii) the approximate amount of solar power the state or region would agree to purchase in exchange for the bribe,” the order added.
Who is Sagar Adani?
30-year-old Sagar Adani is the son of the younger brother of Gautam Adani and holds a degree in economics from Brown University.
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He joined the Adani Group in 2015 and currently, is the executive director of Adani’s Renewable Energy. He is involved in key decision making regarding the company’s development, strategies and finances.
He looks after “all strategic and financial matters of Adani Green Energy”, according to the group’s website. He has played a key role in building the conglomerate’s solar and wind portfolios.