(Bloomberg) -- The Adani Group denied US prosecutors’ charge that its billionaire founder Gautam Adani and his aides were involved in driving a more than $250 million bribery scheme to win Indian solar energy contracts.
The allegations are baseless, the group said in a statement Thursday, adding that it would seek all possible legal recourse to defend itself.
Adani, Asia’s second-richest man, and other defendants were charged in an indictment by federal prosecutors on Wednesday on five counts, including a promise to pay bribes to Indian government officials for solar energy contracts, and concealing the plan as they sought to raise money from US investors.
Adani’s nephew Sagar R. Adani and Vneet S. Jaain, both executives at an Indian renewable-energy company, have also been accused of breaking federal laws. None of the defendants have been taken into custody.
Adani Group stocks tumbled in India Thursday, with flagship Adani Enterprises Ltd. falling by as much as 23% to the lowest level in a year, while Adani Green plunged over 19%.
The indictment comes as the Adani group of companies recovers from claims by short-seller Hindenburg Research that the conglomerate manipulated its stock price and committed accounting fraud. The group has vigorously denied the allegations and its shares have climbed back from their initial plunge caused by the report.
In addition to being a monolithic presence in India, with ports, airports, power lines and highway developments, Adani Group attracts capital from around the world.
Adani also has close political ties to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, so much so that his wealth tumbled by almost $25 billion in a day after the Modi-led political alliance failed to deliver the landslide electoral victory predicted by exit polls in elections earlier this year.
Both Modi and Adani hail from the western Indian state of Gujarat and have risen in tandem, with the tycoon’s sprawling business built on a close alignment with Modi’s nation-building priorities in infrastructure, green energy, defense and digital services.
--With assistance from Peter Vercoe.
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