Billionaire Gautam Adani on Wednesday submitted an affidavit before a US court asserting that he was not aware of any quid pro quo offer that led to the US Department of Justice moving to drop an indictment against him and his associates on bribery and fraud charges.
The affidavit was filed in response to an order issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York on July 8 requiring Adani to state under oath whether he was aware of any promise, offer or agreement relating to the dismissal of the indictment.
Adani says he was not aware of the charges against him
In his affidavit, Adani acknowledged that he posted publicly on X in November 2024 about Adani Group’s plans to invest $10 billion and create 15,000 jobs in the United States.
“When I made this post, the SEC indictment and complaint had not yet been unsealed and made public, and I was not aware of their existence,” he said.
Read also | Was there a quid pro quo to dismiss the case: US judge seeks response from Adani by July 15
Adani also admitted that his legal advisor had indicated that his stated intention to invest $10 billion in the United States may have been part of the resolution of the legal charges against him. However, Adani added that the Justice Department had made it clear that promises to invest in the US would not influence their decision to pursue legal charges. This was consistent with statements made by Chief Assistant District Attorney Trent McCotter.
The judge questioned the Justice Department’s reasons for dropping the case
In 2024, the US Department of Justice filed an indictment against Adani alleging that the company engaged in bribery of Indian officials in order to obtain solar contracts, and subsequently engaged in securities fraud by misleading investors about the company’s anti-corruption and anti-bribery efforts.
However, the US Department of Justice announced in June that it would decline to take further legal action against Adani and his associates. The decision sparked great controversy, with media reports indicating that the Adani Group’s offer to invest in the United States played a major role in the Justice Ministry’s decision.
In May, the SEC announced it would settle its civil suit against Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani subject to court approval. The two agreed to pay a combined fines of $18 million to settle the charges.
On June 26, District Judge Garaufis directed the Justice Department to provide the court with reasons for dismissing the indictment after calling the department’s request “succinct, courteous, and decisive.”
Although the Justice Department defended its decision to drop the charges — citing little evidence of corruption that Indian authorities and largely foreign jurisdictions found in the case — Garaufis directed Gautam Adani to file an affidavit asserting that he was not aware of any quid pro quo.
The attorney cites the Justice Department email
Adani’s lawyer, Robert Giuffra – who has represented US President Donald Trump in the past – also filed a declaration, citing a May 2026 mailer he received from Justice Department officials explicitly rejecting any offer of investment as a factor in the decision to pursue charges or not.
“[T]Part of the joint defense proposal submitted by Gautam Adani, represented by Sullivan & Cromwell, and Sagar R. Adani, represented by Nixon Peabody LLP and Hecker Fink LLP, and Vneet S. Jaain, represented by Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP, to resolve, in part, the criminal charges against them. This office flatly rejected a public proposal to invest $10 billion in the United States. Giuffra by Justice Department officials, mentioned in the first announcement.
