• Source:JND
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The Congress party on Wednesday came down heavily on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), alleging that the Adani Group received the protection of the Prime Minister himself and their alliance was evident. Congress said the "closure of Hindenburg Research does not mean that Modani has got a clean chit," calling it an attempt to shield the conglomerate from scrutiny. Congress stated that the report, which was released in January 2023, had uncovered serious allegations against the Adani Group. The details were so damaging that the Supreme Court of India was compelled to establish an expert committee to probe into these claims.

Congress in a post on X highlighted that the Hindenburg report’s findings were far from trivial. “The Hindenburg Report, which came out in January 2023, proved so scathing that the Supreme Court of India was forced to set up an expert committee to investigate the allegations made in it against the Adani Group,” a post by Congress read.

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Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh in a press release said, "The Hindenburg report released in January 2023 proved to be so serious that the Supreme Court of India was forced to set up a committee of experts to investigate the allegations against the Adani Group – a group that has the protection of none other than the Prime Minister himself. However, the Hindenburg report only covered one aspect of the Adani mega scam – the violation of securities laws. During the January-March 2023 period, the Congress party had raised 100 questions to the Prime Minister under the 'Who is Adani?' (HAHK) series – of these, only 21 questions were related to the disclosures made in the Hindenburg report.”

"The Congress leader argued that the matter was far more serious, involving the misuse of India’s foreign policy for personal gain. “This issue is even more serious. It involves the misuse of India’s foreign policy at the cost of national interests to enrich the Prime Minister’s close friends,” Ramesh said. “It includes forcing Indian businessmen to sell their significant assets and using investigating agencies to help Adani establish a monopoly in sectors like airports, ports, defense, and cement.”

He also criticised the control over institutions like SEBI, which had failed to take action against Adani despite clear evidence. “It involves the issue of institutions like SEBI – once considered highly respected – being captured, with the chairperson of SEBI remaining in position despite clear evidence of conflicts of interest and financial ties with Adani.”

Jairam Ramesh pointed out that SEBI’s investigation, initially meant to be concluded within two months as directed by the Supreme Court, has dragged on for nearly two years with no resolution in sight.

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Jairam Ramesh also cited international probes into the Adani Group. "The US Department of Justice has accused Adani of bribing Indian officials to secure highly lucrative solar energy contracts. According to the Swiss Federal Criminal Court's order, the Swiss Public Prosecutor's Office has frozen several Adani-related bank accounts operated by Chang Chung-Ling and Nasir Ali Shaban Ahli, which are suspected of involvement in illegal activities such as money laundering and embezzlement," he said.

He further criticised the Adani Group’s operations, mentioning that several countries had canceled ongoing Adani-related projects in their territories. "Clear evidence of over-invoicing of coal imported by Adani from Indonesia has surfaced, with the price mysteriously increasing by 52% between being sent and arriving at Gujarat’s Mundra. Investigations have revealed that between 2021 and 2023, Rs 12,000 crore was siphoned off from India through Adani-related trading firms." he said.

The Congress leader also highlighted allegations of benami ownership and price manipulation.

“These are all serious criminal acts associated with crony capitalism, which can only be fully investigated by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC). Without a JPC, the Indian state’s institutions, which are now fully captured, will only work to protect powerful individuals and the Prime Minister’s close associates, leaving the poor and middle class of India to fend for themselves,” the statement stated.