Fresh reports from US media suggest that the American justice department may be preparing to drop fraud charges against Gautam Adani after he hired a new legal team led by one of US President Donald Trump’s personal lawyers.
According to reports by the New York Times and Bloomberg, Adani’s new lawyer, Robert J Giuffra Jr, held a meeting with officials of the US Department of Justice in April. During the discussions, he reportedly said the Adani Group could invest nearly $10 billion in the US economy and create around 15,000 jobs if the charges against the businessman were withdrawn.
The reports also said Giuffra presented a detailed 100-slide document arguing that prosecutors lacked sufficient evidence and jurisdiction to pursue the case against Adani. While prosecutors reportedly maintained that investment commitments would not influence legal proceedings, the proposal is said to have received a favourable response from at least one senior justice department official.
Adani was charged in New York in November 2024 along with two executives linked to an Indian renewable energy company. US prosecutors had accused them of participating in a $250 million bribery scheme involving Indian government officials and of misleading American and international investors.
At the time, the US justice department alleged that Adani and other senior executives used corruption and false statements to secure major state energy supply contracts and raise billions of dollars from investors and banks.
Goutam Adani is regarded as one of the world’s most influential industrialists. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Adani’s net worth is estimated at about $104 billion, making him Asia’s richest person.
The businessman is also seen as politically close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Opposition parties have repeatedly accused the Adani Group of benefiting from political favouritism and crony capitalism, allegations consistently denied by the conglomerate.
Giuffra, who co-chairs the New York law firm Sullivan & Cromwell, had earlier represented Trump in appeals linked to personal legal cases, including the Stormy Daniels hush-money case. Neither the US justice department nor Sullivan & Cromwell immediately commented on the reports.
