The US Department of Justice has reportedly built a solid case against Indian business tycoon and billionaire Gautam Adani backed by solid evidence and documents, which is believed to help prosecutors build a strong case.

However, the extradition of Adani from India remains a big challenge for the department, as per reports.

The Adani Group founder and chair, along with seven others, was charged with multiple counts of fraud and allegedly misleading investors about the scheme. 

The indictment reveals that prosecutors discovered ‘notes’ linked to Sagar Adani’s cellular phone, as well as an email from Gautam Adani containing a copy of a search warrant issued by the FBI against Sagar Adani in March 2023.

These documents are crucial in proving that both Sagar and Gautam Adani were aware that they had misled investors. The documents could be beneficial to US prosecutors in making their case strong.

However, these documents alone may not be enough to strengthen the case. The US authorities would also need witnesses from India, which is a difficult task. Reports indicate that they might require assistance from New Delhi.

Addressing the situation, a federal prosecutor reportedly said that Indian officials may be reluctant to provide statements against an Indian businessman, as they may not want to tarnish India’s image.

India’s foreign ministry said on Friday that they had not yet received any request from Washington for witness testimony in the case. The Ministry referred to the matter as a private issue between the Adani Group and the US Justice Department.

The Eastern District of New York court has charged Gautam Adani, along with several other individuals—including Sagar Adani, Vneet Jain, Ranjit Gupta, Cyril Cabanes, Saurabh Agarwal, Deepak Malhotra, and Rupesh Agarwal—with multiple counts of fraud and for misleading investors about the scheme.

Senior executives from an Indian renewable energy company, an American company, and a Canadian investor are also implicated in a bribery scheme.

They allegedly bribed Indian government officials to secure solar energy supply contracts and misrepresented their anti-bribery practices to investors. According to court documents, they also obstructed a US government investigation into the scheme.

The defendants are accused of paying over $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials in order to obtain solar energy contracts worth billions of dollars for Adani Green Energy, a renewable energy company majority-owned by the Adani Group.

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