A US judge has dismissed criminal charges against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, ending a high-profile bribery and fraud case that had cast a shadow over one of India’s most powerful business empires. The decision was made public in a 47-page order by US District Judge Nicholas Garaufis, who approved the Justice Department’s request to abandon the prosecution but strongly criticised the way the request came about.

Adani, the 64-year-old chairman of the Adani Group, was accused in 2024 of taking part in an alleged scheme to bribe Indian officials for lucrative renewable energy projects and to mislead US investors about the payments. Adani and his companies have consistently denied any wrongdoing. In his first public response to the dismissal, Adani said he accepted the decision with humility and deep respect for the judicial process.

The charges were dismissed with prejudice, meaning the government cannot bring the same case again. The ruling brings an end to a criminal matter that had drawn international attention and intensified scrutiny of the Adani Group’s business practices.

Key facts at a glance

• A US judge dismissed bribery and fraud charges against Gautam Adani with prejudice.
• The judge approved a Justice Department request to drop the case but described the decision-making process as “highly unusual”.
• Senior Justice Department official R Trent McCotter had worked with Adani’s lawyers on the dismissal without consulting the prosecutors and investigators who handled the case, the judge found.
• Adani welcomed the ruling and thanked the judicial process.
• The criminal case is separate from other US legal proceedings involving Adani, his nephew and Adani Enterprises.

How the case unravelled

The criminal case against Adani began with allegations that he and other executives paid bribes to Indian officials to secure favourable contracts for solar and wind energy projects. Prosecutors also accused them of hiding the bribery scheme from American banks and investors who were putting money into Adani’s renewable energy ventures.

Adani and his companies denied every aspect of the allegations, describing them as unfounded. Throughout the proceedings Adani never appeared in a US courtroom. His lawyers fought the indictment and eventually succeeded in persuading the Justice Department to review the case.

In May, the Justice Department asked the court to dismiss the charges. It argued that much of the alleged conduct had taken place outside the United States, making the case difficult to prosecute, and that pursuing it no longer aligned with the department’s priorities. The request came shortly after Adani hired a new legal team led by Robert J Giuffra Jr, co-chair of the US law firm Sullivan & Cromwell and a personal lawyer to President Donald Trump. Giuffra had reportedly met Justice Department officials earlier in the year to raise concerns about the case.

Judge questions the dismissal process

Judge Garaufis did not immediately accept the government’s move. In June, he issued an order saying the Justice Department had not provided a sufficient explanation for abandoning the prosecution. He instructed officials to supply more information, and he began examining whether outside pressure or business considerations had influenced the decision.

In his latest order, the judge singled out R Trent McCotter, the principal associate deputy attorney general, for working with Adani’s lawyers on the dismissal. Garaufis said McCotter had appeared to substitute his own judgment for that of the officials directly involved in the investigation. He noted that the decision had apparently been made without meaningful input from the FBI agents and Securities and Exchange Commission investigators who had built the case.

“The irregularities in the decision to dismiss the indictment are concerning,” Garaufis wrote. He said the process was highly unusual and could damage public confidence in the fairness of the justice system.

$10bn investment pledge raises questions

A major point of concern for the judge was an investment pledge made by Adani in November 2024. Just days after Donald Trump won the US presidential election, Adani announced plans to invest $10bn (£7.5bn) in the United States and create 15,000 jobs. The announcement was made in a social media post congratulating Trump on his election victory.

Later reports said Adani’s lawyers had raised the investment during discussions with Justice Department officials about the criminal case. This prompted the judge to question whether the pledge had influenced the decision to drop the charges. Adani’s lawyers said the investment was never offered in exchange for the dismissal of the case. Judge Garaufis ultimately concluded that the investment had not affected the Justice Department’s decision, but he said the public could draw its own conclusions about how such discussions might affect perceptions of equal justice and the rule of law.

Adani’s response

Adani responded to the ruling with a statement on X, formerly Twitter. “Throughout this challenging period, our faith in truth, fairness and the rule of law remained unwavering,” he wrote. He thanked the judicial system and said the decision would allow the Adani Group to move forward with its global investment plans.

The dismissal of the criminal case does not mark the end of Adani’s US legal exposure. In May, Adani agreed to pay $6m to settle civil allegations brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission. His nephew, Sagar Adani, agreed to pay $12m in a separate settlement with the SEC. Both settlements related to investor disclosures and were resolved without admitting or denying wrongdoing.

Separately, Adani Enterprises, the group’s flagship company, agreed to pay $275m to settle potential civil liability over apparent violations of US sanctions on Iran. That settlement also did not involve an admission of wrongdoing. These matters are civil in nature and are separate from the criminal case that has now been dismissed.

Who is Gautam Adani?

Adani is one of India’s richest men and the founder-chairman of the Adani Group, a sprawling conglomerate with interests in energy, ports, airports, mining, cement and other infrastructure businesses. The group has expanded rapidly over the past two decades and now operates beyond India, but it has also faced periodic accusations of corporate misconduct and political favouritism.

In 2023, the Adani Group was the target of a critical report by a US short-seller that accused it of stock manipulation and accounting fraud. The group denied the claims, but the report triggered a sharp sell-off in Adani company stocks and prompted regulatory scrutiny in India. The recent US criminal case added another layer of legal pressure, though the group continued to secure major investment deals and expand into new areas, including green energy and data centres.

Adani is widely seen as close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Both men come from the western state of Gujarat, and Adani’s business empire has grown significantly during Modi’s time in power. Adani’s supporters say he is a self-made entrepreneur who has built world-class infrastructure in India. Critics, however, have repeatedly questioned the relationship between his business interests and the ruling administration.

With the criminal charges now dismissed, Adani is expected to focus on the group’s international expansion and its commitment to US investments. The legal proceedings have nevertheless left unresolved questions about how the government reached its decision and what role powerful lawyers and business leaders can play in shaping high-profile prosecutions.

Source: MSN News