JPC urgent to probe full extent of corruption in Adani case: Congress

Congress has been persistent in its attack on government since Adani Group stocks took a beating on the bourses in wake of US-based short-selling firm Hindenburg Research making litany of allegations

The Congress on Wednesday reiterated its demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Adani issue, saying it is needed urgently to unearth the full extent of the corruption, monopolisation and glaring gaps in the country's regulatory system.

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh cited a media report and said the latest in the "Modani magic" is the rags-to-riches journey of a private power infrastructure firm.

"Diamond Power Infra Ltd was dragged to bankruptcy court in 2018. By 2022, it was taken over by Mr Gautam Adani's brother-in-law, at the price of paying Rs 501 crore to the lenders, for a company with a market cap of Rs 1,000 crore," Ramesh said in a post on X.

"The firm had zero business in 2022, but by 2023-24, it had revenue of Rs 344 crore -- largely from orders placed by the Adani Group businesses. Thanks to Mr Adani's business, Diamond Power Infra Ltd is now valued at Rs 7,626 crore, a seven-fold increase in valuation," he added.

Transactions with a company owned by a brother-in-law do not fall under the category of related-party deals -- the annual reports of the Adani Group's 10 publicly-listed companies and Diamond Power, therefore, do not disclose the familial relationship between their proprietors, the Congress leader claimed.

"This is a gaping loophole in our regulatory infrastructure, coming just as the integrity and independence of India's financial markets regulator SEBI is also under deep question," he said.

"A JPC into the Modani mega-scam becomes more urgent every passing day, to unearth the full extent of the corruption, the monopolisation, and the glaring gaps in the country's regulatory system," Ramesh added.

The Congress has been persistent in its attack on the government since the Adani Group stocks took a beating on the bourses in the wake of US-based short-selling firm Hindenburg Research making a litany of allegations, including fraudulent transactions and share-price manipulation, on the conglomerate headed by industrialist Gautam Adani.

The Adani Group had dismissed the charges as lies, saying it complies with all laws and disclosure requirements.