Hindenburg report exposes the fraud of Adani, a tycoon close to PM Modi

 

Ajay Roy

 

US-based financial research firm Hindenburg published a report late last month. They alleged that tycoon Gautam Adani's firms are involved in stock manipulation and misused offshore tax havens. Adani's seven listed companies in the stock market all have huge debts; and this is a concern. The report called the incident "the Largest Con in Corporate History".

 

Shares of Adani Enterprises rose 5 per cent on the Mumbai stock exchange after a nearly 50 per cent decline last month.[1] Adani also lost the title of the world's third-richest person. But Adani Group denied all the allegations and claimed it was an attack on India. In this way, they tried to hide behind the national flag. They pretend as if the interests of Adani and the interests of India are synonymous. Meanwhile, India's markets regulator SEBI recently said it has launched an investigation against companies owned by Adani based on allegations made in the Hindenburg report.

 

It is noteworthy that Gautam Adani quickly became one of the top richest men in the world. There have been allegations from various quarters that Adani is getting special benefits for being close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The BJP government has been privatizing state-owned enterprises rapidly, which Adani Group has exploited. He established extensive control over coal mining, power generation and transmission sectors, ports, airports, the cement industry, etc. The central government also intervened to help him acquire wealth abroad. And state-owned banks have given huge loans. State-owned insurance company LIC has invested heavily in Adani's company. Crony capitalism is protected by the Brahminic Hindutva fascist BJP government. It is paving the way for loot of the country's public wealth. Notably, in the nine years of Modi's rule, Adani's assets increased from USD 8 billion to USD 137 billion.[2] The opposition has demanded a high-level probe into the corruption.

 

19/02/2023

 

[1] Annabelle Liang & Nikhil Inamdar, “Adani: India watchdog probing Hindenburg fraud allegations”, February 15, 2023, BBC News
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-64633419

 

[2] Arundhati Roy, ‘‘Modi’s model is at last revealed for what it is: violent Hindu nationalism underwritten by big business’’, February 18, 2023, The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/feb/18/narendra-modi-hindu-nationalism-india-gautam-adani

 

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