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Key occasions in Gautam Adani's US indictment over declared bribery scheme

Indian billionaire Gautam Adani has actually been arraigned by U.S. prosecutors for his supposed function in a $265 million bribery scheme in India, plunging his conglomerate deep into crisis for the 2nd time in 2 years.

Gautam, his nephew Sagar Adani, and Adani Green Energy Ltd. previous CEO Vneet Jaain were charged with breaking securities. and wire scams laws, and the Adanis were likewise charged by the. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in a civil case.

The SEC likewise charged Cyril Cabanes, an executive of Azure. Power International Ltd, for his supposed role in the scheme.

The Adani Group has actually declined the accusations as unwarranted and. stated it complied completely with all laws. Azure Power did not. instantly respond to a request for comment.

Here are the crucial occasions revealed in the supposed bribery. scheme, as reported by U.S. authorities:

Dec 2019-July 2020: India's federal government-owned Solar. Energy Corporation of India (SECI) contracted to purchase 8 gigawatts. ( GW) of solar energy from Adani Green Energy and 4 GW from Azure. Power Global.

Under the contract, SECI was to then find state electricity. distribution companies that would purchase the 12 GW of solar power.

2020: High, fixed energy costs made it tough for SECI to. find purchasers, which put the entire project in jeopardy.

To protect the project, Gautam Adani, together with Sagar and. other officials, came up with a scheme to offer, authorise,. make and guarantee to make kickback payments to Indian government. authorities to discover purchasers for SECI.

Aug to Nov 2021: Gautam met an unidentified Indian authorities. in the southern industrial state of Andhra Pradesh several. times. The authorities was offered 17.50 billion rupees ($ 207.14. million) and Andhra Pradesh state's electricity circulation. business accepted purchase 7 GW of solar energy.

Adani and others provided and promised 2.79 billion rupees to. authorities in other states also to participate in arrangements to. buy solar power from SECI.

Gautam's nephew tracked details of the bribes offered to. numerous authorities in various states on his mobile.

July 2021 to Feb 2022: Electricity companies in the states of. Odisha, Jammu and Kashmir, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh and Andhra. Pradesh gotten in offers to purchase power from SECI, which it would purchase. from Azure Power and Adani Green Energy.

April 2022 - Gautam was scheduled to meet Azure Power CEO. Ranjit Gupta and others to discuss how Azure could pay back Adani. Green around $83 million for its share of the bribes.

Azure, nevertheless, asked Gupta and another executive to resign.

Gautam, Jaain and Sagar fulfilled Azure's expert Rupesh. Agarwal and another executive, and the Adanis provided. multiple choices for Azure to Adani Green.

June 2022: Some Azure Power executives and the Adanis. finalised the mechanism to assist in the payment by returning. power purchase contracts for 2.3 GW from SECI, which it would. then award to Adani Green.

March 2023 - FBI agents approached Sagar in the U.S. with a. search warrant and seized his electronic devices, and served him. with a subpoena.

It detailed the offences, individuals and entities being. investigated by the U.S. authorities. These information were shared. with Gautam.

March 2024 - SECI allowed the reallocation of 2.3 GW of. purchase offers from Azure Power to Adani Green's unit.

Apart from the bribery plan, U.S. authorities have also. declared Gautam, along with Sagar and other business executives,. raised over $3.5 billion in between 2021-24 from worldwide monetary. institutions based on incorrect and misleading statements about. Adani Green's anti-bribery practices.

(source: Reuters)